President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House on Friday, with Zelenskyy in Washington to make his case for procuring American Tomahawk cruise missiles and other military assets.
“President Trump has a big chance now to finish this war,” Zelenskyy said during a working lunch in the Cabinet Room with officials.
The Ukrainian leader highlighted Trump’s brokering of a fragile ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in the Middle East, and said he believed there was momentum to do the same to bring Russia’s three-and-a-half year invasion to an end.
“That’s why I hope that he will do this, and we will also have such big success for Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.
President Donald Trump welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as he arrives for a meeting at the White House in Washington, October 17, 2025.
Tom Brenner/AFP via Getty Images
Trump, who spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday in an hourslong phone call in which they agreed to plan to meet face-to-face in the coming weeks, said he wanted to see the fighting stop.
“We’re in it to see that end and if we can end it quickly, and I think we can. … We’ll see what happens. But the war in the Middle East was far more complicated. We got that one done. And I think we have a good chance,” Trump said.
In a post on his social media platform after the meeting with Zelenskyy, Trump described it as “very interesting, and cordial,” but said he thinks “it is time to stop the killing, and make a DEAL.”
Referring to Russia and Ukraine, Trump said, “They should stop where they are. Let both claim Victory, let History decide! No more shooting, no more Death, no more vast and unsustainable sums of money spent.”
Days before the meeting, Trump appeared bullish about potentially selling the long-range missiles to Ukraine as he expressed disappointment in Moscow’s continued onslaught. But after his call with Putin, Trump seemed more cautious and began to express concern about depleting the U.S. supply.
“That’s a problem. We need Tomahawks and we need a lot of other things that we’ve been sending over the past four years to Ukraine,” Trump said as he and Zelenskyy took questions from reporters on Friday.
President Donald Trump meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, October 17, 2025.
Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
Trump acknowledged it would be an “escalation” to sell the coveted weapons to Kyiv, but said he and Zelenskyy would discuss it.
“We’d much rather have them not need Tomahawks,” Trump said. “Would much rather have the war be over, to be honest.”
Zelenskyy floated the possibility of an exchange where if the U.S. provided Tomahawks to Ukraine, then Ukraine would provide the U.S. with their drones. When asked if that was something he would be interested in, Trump said yes.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Zelenskyy told ABC News’ Mary Bruce that he believes Putin fears Ukraine acquiring the long-range missiles but acknowledged that it’s possible he might not get them in the end, saying, “I’m realistic.”
Zelenskyy also told reporters he agreed with Trump’s social media post calling for both sides to “stop where they are.”
Zelenskyy said, “The president is right, and we have to stop where we are.” He added, “Both sides have to stop, but between us, it’s about Putin because … we didn’t begin this war.”
Zelenskyy has described Tomahawks as a potential difference-maker in the conflict, as they would give Ukraine the ability to strike deep inside Russia. That prospect, Zelenskyy’s said, could force Putin to negotiate.
“We want peace. Putin doesn’t want. That’s why we need pressure on him,” he said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky listens during a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump and members of his Cabinet at the White House, October 17, 2025, in Washington.
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Trump talked more about his planned meeting with Putin in Budapest, saying the location was chosen because they both have a positive relationship with Hungary’s Viktor Orban.
When asked if Zelenskyy would join them, Trump said there was a “lot of bad blood” between Zelenskyy and Putin.
“I would say most likely it’s going to be a double meeting. It’ll be a double meeting, but we will have the President Zelenskyy in touch,” Trump said.
Trump last met with Putin in Alaska in August, a high-profile summit that included a military flyover but yielded no major breakthroughs.
Trump was asked on Friday if he was concerned that Putin is trying to buy more time with a second meeting.
“Yeah I am but you know, I’d been played all my life by the best of them, and I came out really well,” Trump said. “So it’s possible. Yeah, a little time. It’s alright. But I think that I’m pretty good at this stuff. I think that he wants to make a deal.”
