The hope of the president of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky for the delivery of long-range Tomahawk missiles by the US turned out to be rather excessive, after President Trump avoided such a move by calling these weapons “extremely dangerous” and adding that the US probably needs them for itself.

Both know that with these missiles, Kiev would be able to hit even Moscow, which the American president seems to understand would trigger a possibly uncontrollable escalation of the war. It would also tarnish his narrative of a president who brings peace everywhere.

What Zelensky finally received once again, aside from sartorial comments, were essentially exhortations to capitulate, albeit not in the crude manner that had occurred during his maiden visit to the White House.

Trump’s post on the Social Truth network is typical: “The meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine was very interesting and cordial, but I told him, as I also strongly suggested to President Putin, that it’s time to stop the killing and make a DEAL!” Enough blood has been spilled… They must stop where they are. Let both winners declare, let history decide! No more shootings, no more deaths, no more huge and unbearable amounts of money being spent. This is a war that would never have started had I been President. Thousands of people are slaughtered every week. It is enough, go to your families in peace.’

Warnings from the Kremlin

Zelensky had earlier repeated the assessment that Putin is not going to agree to peace and had called the delivery of the Tomahawks necessary for the defense of his country and to change the balance in its favor. He also took advantage of their visit to the US to meet with representatives of energy and defense industry companies, even proposing exchanges of the missiles for thousands of Ukrainian drones. The Ukrainian politician admitted that the US has a “realistic stance” on the issue which he to some extent understands. Based on information from the Kremlin, Putin in his conversation with Trump had warned of the consequences that the delivery of the Tomahawks would have in Kiev, which would definitively bury any hopes for peace.

According to the website Axios and the CNN network, the meeting between the two presidents did not take place in such a good atmosphere and in fact at one point tensions peaked. The results of the meeting were recorded with concern, if not discomfort, in the important European capitals, which preferred not to make specific comments, but to repeat their positions known from the beginning.

Discomfort in Europe

Zelensky briefed his European partners on his visit to the White House, including Chancellor Friedrich Merz, according to German government spokesman Stefan Cornelius, who called it a “constructive meeting”. European partners welcomed what he said was “close transatlantic cooperation and underlined the urgency of efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace for Ukraine.” Ukraine now needs a peace plan, Chancellor Mertz estimated. “Volodymyr Zelensky has the full support of Germany and our European friends on the road to peace,” he added. However, Trump’s stance on the issue of missiles takes a difficult issue for German politics off the table for the time being, namely the possibility of delivering Taurus missiles to Ukraine.

Source: ARD, RND