US President Donald Trump on July 7 said the United States will send more weapons to Ukraine to help the war-torn country defend itself against Russian attacks.
“We're going to send some more weapons. We have to," Trump told reporters at the White House. “They have to be able to defend themselves. They're getting hit very hard now.”
The United States will send primarily defensive weapons, he said, speaking at the start of a dinner with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"At President Trump's direction, the Department of Defense is sending additional defensive weapons to Ukraine to ensure the Ukrainians can defend themselves while we work to secure a lasting peace and ensure the killing stops," Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement shortly afterward.
Neither Trump nor the Pentagon provided details, but the decision marked at least a partial reversal of a Pentagon announcement last week that it would hold back delivering some air defense missiles, precision-guided artillery, and other weapons amid concerns that US stockpiles have declined too much.
Parnell's July 7 statement said the Pentagon's "framework for [Trump] to evaluate military shipments across the globe remains in effect and is integral to our America First defense priorities."
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Ukraine has been asking Washington to sell it more Patriot missiles and systems that it sees as key to defending its cities from what has become almost regular nightly Russian air strikes as Moscow's military tries to overwhelm Ukraine’s air defenses.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy again referred to the need for more Patriot air defense units in his nightly video address on July 7.
“We are working, in particular, with the American side on the relevant decisions regarding Patriots and missiles for them,” he said.
After a call with Trump on July 4, Zelenskyy said he had agreed to work on increasing Kyiv's capability to "defend the sky" as Russian attacks escalated. He said he discussed joint defense production, purchases, and investments with Trump.
Trump said after the call that Ukraine would need Patriot missiles to defend itself, but did not mention them specifically on July 7.
Ukraine has been defending itself against a full-scale Russian invasion that began in February 2022. Russian attacks on Ukraine that lasted into the early hours of July 7 killed at least 11 civilians and injured more than 80 others, including seven children, officials said.
Trump has said he is determined to end the conflict and again vented his growing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“I’m not happy with President Putin at all," Trump said.
Trump has threatened to impose new sanctions against Russia's oil industry to try to prod Putin into peace talks but has so far held off.
However, Senator Lindsey Graham (Republican-South Carolina) said last week that Trump has given him the go-ahead to push a bill that calls for steep tariff on goods imported from countries such as China and India that continue to buy Russian oil.
Zelenskyy on July 7 announced plans to expand drone production with allies for the post-war period.
"We are working with partners to ensure that production in their countries operates at full capacity as well -- both for our shared defense today and for partners' arsenals after the war," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video.
Kyiv is engaging with all leaders and countries that can help through investment, components, or manufacturing, he said.
“Step by step, we are closing the funding gap for the production of drones and interceptor drones, and filling Ukrainian production lines with specific orders,” he said.
