President Trump on Wednesday kindled a significant thaw in relations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky when the two met on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey, as Ukraine seizes the initiative in its more than four-year war against Russia.
Trump announced the U.S. would buy Ukrainian drones and, even more importantly, gave a green light for Ukraine to co-produce Patriot interceptors, a move that could significantly improve its air defenses in the years ahead.
The Trump-Zelensky bonhomie signaled the latest shift in a historically fraught relationship. Trump has railed against U.S. funds provided to Ukraine throughout the Biden administration and has put pressure on Zelensky in private and public to cede territory to Russia as part of a deal to end the war.
But speaking in front of reporters on Wednesday, Trump remarked on warming up to Zelensky since a disastrous blow-up in the Oval Office between the two leaders in February 2025.
“We’ve actually developed a good relationship. It’s hard to believe, right? From the Oval Office to now, I think we’ve developed a very good relationship,” Trump said.
Offering a window into the toll of the U.S. war against Iran, Trump said the U.S. does not have “many” Patriot interceptors left, when asked if he would transfer any of the missiles directly to Ukraine.
“We’re going to give a license to you to make Patriots. That’s pretty cool, right? This way you can’t complain that we’re not giving them enough,” Trump said to Zelensky.
Trump said he still needed to inform the “company” and added “but that’ll work out all right.”
Lockheed Martin, which produces Patriot interceptors, already has a massive backlog of global Patriot orders and has told U.S. allies it’s up to the Pentagon to decide who gets priority.
It’s unclear how quickly Ukraine might be able to stand up its own production facilities, but the announcement still marks a turning point for Kyiv.
Zelensky has carried out a years-long campaign advocating for a license to co-produce the interceptors, which are badly needed in Ukraine to defend against Russian ballistic missile attacks. Russian salvos against Ukraine have increased in intensity in response to successful Ukrainian attacks deep inside Russia on military targets and oil production sites.
Trump, during the meeting with Zelensky, gave his tacit approval to Ukraine’s pressure strategy against Russian President Vladimir Putin by bringing the war across the border.
“It’s an escalation, but it’s also an escalation that could help lead to an end,” Trump said.
The press conference between the two leaders appeared to demonstrate the best-case scenario for Ukraine and its supporters among NATO members, who had worried Trump’s animosity toward the alliance and his routine deference to Putin would undermine support for Kyiv and NATO.
THE HILL
