During a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, former U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the United States intends to grant Ukraine a license to manufacture Patriot missiles.
‘A purely defensive system’
“We will give you the license to build Patriots. It’s perfect. That way, you can’t complain that we’re not giving you enough,” Trump told Zelenskyy, emphasizing that the Patriot is a strictly defensive weapons system. “It’s a defensive weapon — one I like much more than an offensive one,” he added.
The issue of Patriot missile production has long been a priority for Kyiv. The U.S.-made air defense system is currently Ukraine’s only operational capability capable of intercepting ballistic missiles — a critical need amid ongoing Russian strikes.
Zelenskyy had previously signaled he would raise the matter directly with Trump during their meeting.
U.S. pressure on manufacturers expected
Trump also revealed that the U.S. government is prepared to exert influence over the companies responsible for producing Patriot missiles to accelerate the licensing process. “We have tremendous influence over the companies that make Patriots. We haven’t informed the company yet, but everything will go smoothly. I’m confident they’ll be excited,” he said.
Lockheed Martin is the primary contractor for the Patriot interceptor missiles.
‘Putin and Zelenskyy both want the war to end’
Speaking more broadly about the war in Ukraine, Trump stated that both Moscow and Kyiv want the conflict to end. Yet he described both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as “tough” negotiators.
“We’ve settled many wars, and this was the one I thought might be the easiest. But Putin is a tough character — and this guy here is a tough character,” Trump said, gesturing toward Zelenskyy, who stood beside him.
In response, Zelenskyy said he hoped to discuss “some very important details” with Trump and expressed confidence in the former U.S. president’s commitment to ending the war. “I’m certain you’ll do everything possible to stop this war,” he told Trump.