On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the United States would be providing “additional defensive weaponry” to Ukraine, a move that the Kremlin claimed would only prolong the conflict.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump stated, “We will have to send more weapons – primarily defensive ones,” reiterating his “discontent” with Russian President Vladimir Putin for not seeking peace. He added that Ukrainians are “facing very severe strikes.”
Russian news agencies reported Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov as saying during a press briefing on Tuesday that such measures “clearly do not align with efforts to achieve a peaceful settlement.” He warned that supplying Ukraine with weapons would only extend the duration of the war.
Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has attempted to persuade Putin, sometimes through incentives and other times through threats, to end the war, but to no significant effect so far.
Unexpectedly, last week the White House announced a halt in the supply of certain weapons to Kyiv, officially citing concerns over dwindling U.S. ammunition stocks. However, U.S. officials quickly sought to downplay the significance of this decision, without providing further details.
Axios reported, citing unnamed sources, that Trump promised “immediate delivery of ten Patriot defense systems,” which is fewer than those suspended in early July according to the outlet.
Conversations are ongoing with Germany, which is considering purchasing Patriot missiles from the United States to send to Ukraine, where the president is calling for more of these missiles.
During the administration of former President Joe Biden, Washington committed over $65 billion in military aid to Ukraine.
However, Trump, who has often questioned the effectiveness of the aid given to Ukraine, has not followed in the footsteps of his Democratic predecessor and has not announced any new military aid packages for Kyiv since his return to the White House in January.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will be traveling to Rome this week to attend a conference featuring world leaders and companies, aimed at garnering support for the reconstruction of his war-torn country.
The Ukraine Reconstruction Conference will be held in the Italian capital on Thursday and Friday, focusing on attracting investments, particularly from the private sector, as Kyiv enters its fourth year of conflict.
Diplomatic efforts between Moscow and Kyiv have stalled. Two rounds of talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials in Turkey, on May 16 and June 2, failed to yield significant progress, and no third round has been announced yet.