US President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the NATO summit, suggesting that increased NATO spending could deter future Russian aggression.
NATO members agreed to a target increase, aiming to spend 5% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annually on core defense and security-related expenditures by 2035.
The previous target was 2% of GDP.
“Europe taking more security responsibility will help prevent future disasters, like the terrible situation with Russia and Ukraine,” Trump stated at a press conference following his meeting with Zelensky.
“Hopefully, we’re going to get that solved.”
The US President also reiterated his belief that Russian President Vladimir Putin desires an end to the war in Ukraine, which began with Russia’s invasion in February 2022.
“He’d like to get out of this thing. It’s a mess for him,” Trump said.
“He called the other day and said, ‘Can I help you with Iran?’ I said, ‘No, you can help me with Russia.'”
This meeting marked the first face-to-face interaction between Trump and Zelensky since they met at St. Peter’s Basilica during Pope Francis’s funeral in April.
Earlier in the year, Trump and Zelensky had a significant confrontation at the White House.
In a social media post, Zelensky described the talks in The Hague as substantive and expressed his gratitude to Trump for US assistance.
“We discussed achieving a ceasefire and genuine peace. We talked about protecting our people. We appreciate the attention and readiness to help bring peace closer,” Zelensky added.
Trump indicated a potential willingness to send more US-made Patriot air defense missile systems to Kyiv.
Responding to a Ukrainian reporter, whose husband is a Ukrainian soldier, Trump acknowledged that providing more Patriot systems would benefit Ukraine.
“They do want to have the anti-missile missiles, OK, as they call them, the Patriots,” Trump said.
“And we’re going to see if we can make some available. We need them, too. We’re supplying them to Israel, and they’re very effective, 100% effective. Hard to believe how effective. They do want that more than any other thing.”
Throughout the war, the US has consistently urged allies to supply Ukraine with air defense systems.
However, many are hesitant to relinquish these high-tech systems, particularly countries in Eastern Europe that also feel threatened by Russia.
During his news conference, Trump criticized the US media extensively but exhibited uncommon warmth toward the Ukrainian reporter.
“That’s a very good question,” Trump said regarding the query about Patriots.
“And I wish you a lot of luck. I mean, I can see it’s very upsetting to you. So say hello to your husband.”
Ukraine has been a central topic at recent NATO summits.
However, Zelensky was absent from the room as the alliance’s latest annual meeting of leaders commenced in the Netherlands.
The Trump administration has blocked Ukraine’s bid to join NATO.
The conflict with Russia has devastated Ukrainian towns and resulted in the deaths of thousands of civilians.
Just last week, Russia launched one of the largest drone attacks of the war.
During his 2024 campaign for the White House, Trump pledged to quickly end the war.
He viewed it as a costly conflict that, he claimed, would not have occurred if he had won re-election in 2020.
Since taking office in January, he has faced challenges in finding a resolution to the conflict and has expressed frustration with both Putin and Zelensky.
Zelensky spent Tuesday in The Hague attending various meetings.
He secured a pledge from the Netherlands, the summit host, for military aid, including new drones and radars to aid in intercepting Russian drones.
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced that the United Kingdom would provide 350 air defense missiles to Ukraine, funded by £70 million generated from the interest on seized Russian assets.
