On Friday, October 17, 2025, the White House is set to host a high-stakes meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, coming at a pivotal moment in the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia. The gathering follows a lengthy and reportedly productive phone call the previous day between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin—one that has cast new uncertainty over Ukraine’s hopes of acquiring long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles from the United States.
For weeks, Ukrainian officials have pressed Washington for the missile system, arguing that the ability to strike deep into Russian territory—targeting military sites, energy facilities, and critical infrastructure—could force Moscow to take peace negotiations seriously. According to Associated Press and Bloomberg, Zelenskyy has made no secret of his belief that such weaponry is essential to shifting the balance and compelling President Putin to the bargaining table.
Trump, for his part, had recently appeared open to the idea. The Tomahawk, with its range of about 995 miles (1,600 kilometers), represents a significant escalation in the kind of support the U.S. might provide Kyiv. Yet, after Thursday’s two-and-a-half-hour phone call with Putin—the eighth and longest conversation between the leaders since Trump’s return to office in January—Trump’s tone shifted noticeably.
Speaking to reporters after the call, Trump cited concerns about the U.S. military’s own needs. “We need Tomahawks for the United States of America too,” he said, as reported by AP. “We have a lot of them, but we need them. I mean, we can’t deplete our country.” This statement, echoing earlier remarks, signaled a retreat from any immediate plans to send the missiles to Ukraine. Trump’s caution, as noted by Bloomberg, reflects both logistical and strategic calculations as he prepares for direct talks with Zelenskyy.
Inside the call with Putin, the conversation was frank. According to Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s foreign policy adviser, the Russian president warned that supplying Tomahawks to Kyiv “won’t change the situation on the battlefield, but would cause substantial damage to the relationship between our countries.” The message was clear: while the missiles might not tip the military balance, their delivery would ratchet up tensions between Washington and Moscow.
Bloomberg’s coverage highlighted that Trump adopted a noticeably more constructive tone with Putin than in previous conversations. The agency reported that Trump appeared unwilling to share Tomahawk missiles with Kyiv after their discussion, suggesting the White House was ready to give diplomacy another chance before considering more aggressive measures. Trump, for his part, emphasized the need to achieve peace in Ukraine quickly, arguing that ending the conflict could “open vast opportunities for economic cooperation between Russia and the United States.”
Putin, meanwhile, reaffirmed Moscow’s commitment to a diplomatic solution and offered a detailed assessment of the situation on the ground. Both leaders discussed the possibility of an in-person meeting, likely to take place in Budapest, Hungary—a detail confirmed by both AP and Bloomberg. Senior aides, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, are scheduled to meet next week at an unspecified location to lay the groundwork for these talks.
For Zelenskyy, the timing of this White House meeting is critical. The Ukrainian president has argued that only with the threat—or reality—of deep strikes into Russian territory can Ukraine hope to force Putin into meaningful negotiations. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, in a post on X late Thursday, said that even the discussion of supplying Tomahawks “has helped push Putin toward talks.” He added, “The conclusion is that we need to continue with strong steps. Strength can truly create momentum for peace.”
This will mark the fourth face-to-face meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy since January and their second in less than a month. The frequency of their encounters reflects the urgency both leaders feel about the war’s trajectory—and the shifting sands of U.S. foreign policy. Trump, recently buoyed by brokering a ceasefire and hostage agreement between Israel and Hamas, has declared that ending the Ukraine war is now his top foreign policy priority.
Yet, the path to peace remains fraught with complications. Before his latest call with Putin, Trump had expressed growing frustration with the Russian leader. Just last month, in what AP described as a dramatic shift, Trump suggested Ukraine could reclaim all territory lost to Russia—a notable departure from his previous calls for Kyiv to make concessions. Since his 2024 campaign, Trump has insisted he would end the war quickly, but his efforts appeared to stall after a spate of summits and meetings in August, including a high-profile encounter with Putin in Alaska and a White House gathering with Zelenskyy and European allies.
Despite Trump’s confidence that he was paving the way for direct talks between Zelenskyy and Putin, the Russian leader has so far shown little interest in meeting his Ukrainian counterpart. Moscow has, if anything, intensified its bombardment of Ukraine in recent weeks. Trump, reflecting on the situation after his call with Putin, struck a more neutral tone. He described the conversation as “very productive” and hinted that negotiations between Zelenskyy and Putin might have to be indirect. “They don’t get along too well, those two,” Trump said, according to AP. “So we may do something where we’re separate. Separate but equal.”
Experts and diplomats are watching closely to see whether this new round of diplomacy—marked by Trump’s hesitation on missile transfers and renewed focus on negotiation—will yield tangible results. While some in Kyiv worry that the U.S. is stepping back just as Ukraine needs more support, others see the possibility that even the threat of advanced weaponry has already nudged Moscow toward engagement. As Ukrainian Foreign Minister Sybiha put it, “Strength can truly create momentum for peace.”
With the world’s attention fixed on Washington, Budapest, and the front lines in Ukraine, the coming days may prove decisive. Trump’s balancing act—between arming an ally, preserving U.S. military strength, and keeping diplomatic channels open with Moscow—will test his administration’s ability to manage one of the most dangerous conflicts of the decade. For now, all eyes are on the White House, where two presidents will try to chart a course through the fog of war and the shifting priorities of international politics.