His desire Donald Trump to close yet another peace deal seems to be standing in the way of the Ukrainian president’s effort Volodymyr Zelensky to upgrade his country’s arsenal to continue his war with Russia.

Although the US president did not rule out providing the Tomahawk long-range missiles requested by Zelensky, he seemed wary of this prospectas he prepares for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hungary in the coming weeks.

After speaking with Zelensky for more than two hours, Trump invited both Ukraine and Russia to “stop the war immediately,” even if that means Ukraine ceding territory.

“Stop at the front line, both sides go home to their families,” Trump told reporters as he left for his home in West Palm Beach, Florida. “Let the killings stop. And that’s all. Stop now at the front line. I told this to President Zelensky. I also told President Putin.”

Trump’s move to reach out again to Putin – a strategy that has in the past frustrated Zelensky and some European allies – overshadowed an otherwise friendly exchange between the two leaders in front of reporters before a private lunch.

Afterwards, the two leaders met behind closed doors, where they also discussed the phone call that Trump had the day before with the Russian president.

“To find each other a little”

“I believe that President Zelensky wants the war to end, and I believe that President Putin also wants it. Now all they have to do is find each other a little bit,” Trump told reporters.

Zelenskiy, however, underlined how difficult the ceasefire effort has been. “We want this. Putin doesn’t want it,” he said.

The Ukrainian president told Trump that Ukraine has thousands of drones ready to attack Russian targets, but it needs American missiles.

“We don’t have Tomahawk, that’s why we need Tomahawk,” he said.

Trump replied: “We’d rather you didn’t need Tomahawk.”

Later, Trump reiterated that he wants the United States to maintain its arsenal. “We also want the Tomahawks. We don’t want to give away things we need to protect our country,” he said.

After the meeting, which Zelensky described as productive, he told reporters that he did not want to talk about long-range missiles any more, noting that the US does not want escalation and that he is “realistic” about the chances of getting them.

The Ukrainian president, who spoke to European leaders by phone after the meeting, said he was counting on Trump to put pressure on Putin “to stop this war.”

When asked about Trump’s comments, Zelensky said: “The president is right, and we have to stop where we are. It’s important to stop where we are and then talk.”

It was not clear exactly what Putin told Trump that prompted him to agree to the new meeting, which is expected to take place within the next few weeks. Their previous meeting, in August in Alaska, had ended prematurely without any significant progress.

The Kremlin said “a lot needs to be decided” and left open the possibility that the meeting could take place “a little later” than the two-week time frame Trump had mentioned.

Trump’s conciliatory stance after his phone call with Putin raised questions about whether further US aid to Ukraine is likely in the near future, while reigniting fears in Europe of a possible deal favorable to Russia. A representative of the European Union said that he welcomes the talks, as long as they can contribute to peace in Ukraine.

When Trump was asked if he was worried that Putin was “working him” just to buy time, Trump replied: “You know, I’ve been ‘worked’ by the best in my life, and I’ve done fine, so it’s possible.”

Michael Carpenter, a former official and current researcher at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said the meeting with Trump was not what Zelensky had hoped for, but was consistent with the Trump administration’s overall stance on the war.

“The reality is that there is no willingness to impose costs on Russia,” he said.

Trump expressed his appreciation for Zelensky, even praising him for the dark smart jacket he wore, an indirect reference to the first visit to the White House, when he was repeatedly attacked by Trump and JD Vance. “He’s handsome in his jacket,” Trump commented. “I hope people take notice.”

Escalation of war

Trump, who wants to win the Nobel Peace Prize at any cost, wants to add the war between Russia and Ukraine to those he claims he helped end.

More than 3.5 years after Russia invaded Ukraine, Moscow has made some territorial gains this year. However, Ukrainian commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky said on Thursday that the Russian attack had failed.

Putin said this month that his forces have seized nearly 5,000 sq km of Ukrainian territory by 2025, about 1% of Ukraine, adding to the nearly 20% already held by Russia by 2022.

Both sides have stepped up attacks on energy networks, while Russian drones and aircraft have invaded the airspace of NATO countries, causing concern.

Analysts see the talks as a delaying tactic

The White House was reportedly growing frustrated with Putin’s stance and is seriously considering providing Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.

After Friday’s talks, Zelensky said Russia was “afraid of Tomahawks.” Moscow has warned that providing such missiles would constitute a serious escalation.

The Russian president appears to be trying to delay the shipment of these weapons from the US by feigning interest in talks, argues Max Bergmann, a Russian affairs expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Mykola Bielieskov, a senior analyst at the Ukrainian foundation Come Back Alive, which supplies the military with equipment, said: “We do not expect Russia to collapse from one, two or three successful attacks. But it’s a matter of pressure, constant pressure. It’s a matter of causing a rift in Russia’s military-industrial complex.”