Zelensky Proposes Swapping Ukrainian Drones for U.S. Tomahawk Missiles During White House Visit

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has proposed a deal to trade Ukraine’s domestically produced drones for the United States’ long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles during his visit to the White House for talks with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Speaking at the meeting, Zelensky said Kyiv urgently needs the Tomahawks to bolster its defense capabilities and suggested that Ukraine could offer thousands of its locally manufactured drones in exchange.
“Ukraine has thousands of our production drones, but we don’t have Tomahawks,” he said. “That’s why we need Tomahawks. They [the U.S.] can have our thousands of drones — that’s where we can work together.”

President Trump, however, appeared cautious about the proposal, noting that the U.S. must also maintain sufficient stockpiles of its own weapon systems.
“Hopefully, they won’t need it — hopefully, we’ll be able to get the war over without thinking about Tomahawks,” Trump said at the start of their working lunch. He added, “I have an obligation to make sure we’re completely stocked up as a country. We need Tomahawks for the United States of America too.”

When asked about the possibility of Ukraine ceding territory to Russia as part of a peace deal, Trump avoided a direct answer, saying only, “You never know… War is very interesting. You never know with war and peace.”

His comments mark another shift in tone after previously suggesting land swaps could be a possible solution, before later asserting that Ukraine could regain all its occupied territory. His latest remarks suggest he remains undecided as diplomatic discussions continue.