14 Jul 2025

Donald Trump says US will send Patriot missiles to Ukraine

1:43 pm on 14 July 2025

By Steve Holland and Trevor Hunnicutt, Reuters

This handout photograph released by the Ukrainian presidential press service on September 27, 2024 shows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (L) and Republican presidential nominee former US President Donald Trump meeting on September 27, 2024 in New York. - The meeting coincides with Zelensky's visit to New York for the United Nations General Assembly. (Photo by Handout / UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (L) and US President Donald Trump meeting on 27 September, 2024 in New York. Photo: AFP - Ukrainian Presidential Press Service

US President Donald Trump said he will send Patriot air defense missiles to Ukraine, saying they are necessary to defend the country because Russian President Vladimir Putin "talks nice but then he bombs everybody in the evening".

Trump did not give a number of Patriots he plans to send to Ukraine, but he said the United States would be reimbursed for their cost by the European Union.

The US president has grown increasingly disenchanted with Putin because the Russian leader has resisted Trump's attempts to negotiate a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has asked for more defensive capabilities to fend off a daily barrage of missile and drone attacks from Russia.

"We will send them Patriots, which they desperately need, because Putin really surprised a lot of people. He talks nice and then bombs everybody in the evening. But there's a little bit of a problem there. I don't like it," Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews outside of Washington.

"We basically are going to send them various pieces of very sophisticated military equipment. They are going to pay us 100% for that, and that's the way we want it," Trump said.

He plans to meet NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte to discuss Ukraine and other issues this week.

- Reuters

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