Zelensky: Trump meeting was ‘positive’ despite lack of Tomahawk commitment

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that his meeting with President Trump was “positive” even though he failed to secure a commitment from the U.S. to provide Tomahawk missiles for his war-torn country.

Zelensky met with Trump at the White House on Friday after Trump initially signaled Washington could provide Ukraine with the long-range missiles, which Zelensky argues could help bring Russia to the negotiating table.

But Zelensky left without any such commitment from Trump, who spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin hours before his meeting with Zelensky on Friday.

“In my opinion, he does not want an escalation with the Russians until he meets with them,” Zelensky told reporters about the meeting.

Multiple reports indicated that the meeting between Trump and Zelensky was tense, with the U.S. leader allegedly pressuring his Ukrainian counterpart to accept Putin’s demands. Zelensky confirmed that Trump told him during the meeting that Putin is still demanding that Ukraine cede the entire Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

But Trump publicly backed a freeze along the current front lines, which Zelensky said is a “positive” outcome for Ukraine.

“We share President Trump’s positive outlook if it leads to the end of the war,” Zelensky said.

“After many rounds of discussion over more than two hours with him and his team, his message, in my view, is positive — that we stand where we stand on the line of contact, provided all sides understand what is meant,” he continued.

The Associated Press contributed.