Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked President Trump during their meeting on Tuesday to provide Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles, which could give Ukraine the ability to strike as far into Russia as Moscow.
The intrigue: Zelensky told “The Axios Show” on Wednesday that he’d asked Trump for an additional weapons system that could force Russian President Vladimir Putin to enter peace talks — perhaps without Ukraine even having to use it.
— Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told “The Axios Show” that if Russia won’t end the war, officials working in the Kremlin should make sure they know where the nearest bomb shelter is.
Why it matters: Zelensky said he had President Trump’s explicit backing to hit Russian targets like energy infrastructure and arms factories. And he said that if Ukraine gets additional long-range weaponry from the U.S., “we will use it.”
