Full story
Patriot talks in Washington
President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met Tuesday at the White House before traveling to the U.S. Capitol to honor the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, with the meeting marking the second time the two leaders have met this month after Trump announced the U.S. would allow Ukraine to manufacture Patriot air defense systems under license.
“Based on facts observed and directly verified by our reporters or by informed sources”
Zelenskyy said his “number one priority is anti-ballistic defense and strategic cooperation with America,” and after the Oval Office meeting he thanked Trump on social media for “everything we do together to protect the lives of Ukrainians and advance peace.”
The discussions included “licenses for Patriot interceptor production and several other ideas that could help,” and Zelenskyy said the two also spoke about diplomacy, adding “it’s important that the diplomatic process be reinvigorated.”
The meeting took place as Zelenskyy has publicly accused Russia of helping Iran during the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, and Trump downplayed those allegations while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One as he traveled to Michigan.
After leaving the White House, Zelenskyy met with executives from defense contractor Lockheed Martin to discuss expanding joint weapons production and technology sharing, with Zelenskyy saying their teams are already working on “specific solutions” to move into co-production as quickly as possible.
Officials praise, details scarce
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted that Trump’s meetings with Zelenskyy and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were “positive and productive,” while Sky News said few details emerged about what was said in the room and that all parties had been positive about the progress made.
Zelenskyy told reporters after the meeting that he had a “good” meeting with Trump and that they discussed licenses for Patriot interceptor production, while he also said the diplomatic process should be “reinvigorated.”
NBC News framed the day as a dual focus on Graham’s funeral and the White House meetings, noting Trump met with Netanyahu and Zelenskyy earlier today and that Trump delivered remarks at Graham’s funeral at Washington National Cathedral.
In parallel, ABC News reported that Zelenskyy and Netanyahu met separately with Trump at the White House, with the meetings expected to give both leaders a chance to push their agendas as U.S. policy towards Iran and the Russia-Ukraine war continues to be in flux.
The Guardian described the meetings as taking place without cameras and said “Neither wanted cameras in the room,” while also tying the timing to Graham’s funeral at Washington National Cathedral.
What’s at stake next
Zelenskyy’s push for Patriot interceptor production is tied to the broader pressure on Ukraine’s air defenses, with TF1 Info saying the Ukrainian president arrived with an “absolute priority”: “defense against ballistic missiles,” and that only the American Patriot systems are capable of shooting them down while Ukraine lacks PAC-3 interceptors.
TF1 Info also reported that in July alone, Moscow launched 120 high-speed ballistic and anti-ship missiles at Ukraine, of which only 35 were intercepted, and it said the shortage has worsened since the war launched by the United States with Israel against Iran last February.
AP News quoted Luke Coffey, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, saying expanding production capacity for Patriot interceptors is vital for Ukraine and “for the U.S. and its Gulf allies,” and Coffey said he had “no doubt” Ukraine could produce the missiles once granted the license.
The same White House diplomacy track is linked to sanctions planning around Graham, with WPDE | Local Western saying Senate Republican leaders are hoping to advance Graham’s sanctions legislation before lawmakers leave Washington for the August recess.
WPDE | Local Western said the bipartisan bill would impose tariffs on goods from the world’s five largest purchasers of Russian oil and natural gas, including China and India, and would sanction Russian President Vladimir Putin, senior Russian political and military leaders, Russian financial institutions and key Russian energy projects.
