Originally published at Judgenap.com and reprinted with permission
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Kiev has inked a major arms agreement with the US.
“Today, I also agreed on the main principles of our agreements with America, Ukraine – the United States, on arms,” he stated in his nightly address on Wednesday. “Large-scale agreements, I talked about them with President Trump, and I very, very much hope that we will be able to implement all of this. This will definitely strengthen both of our countries, and therefore – our allies, our partners.”
Zelensky did not provide details on what arms will be sold to Ukraine or how Kiev would pay for the weapons.
Ukraine has relied on the largesse of the US and its NATO allies to fund its government and arm its troops. However, President Donald Trump has been critical of the Joe Biden administration’s policy of transferring arms to Ukraine for free.
Since Trump returned to office, Washington, Kiev, and NATO have developed multiple schemes to keep arms to Ukraine flowing without the US paying for the arms with military assistance. NATO has agreed to buy billions in American arms for Ukraine. Additionally, Trump and Zelensky signed a minerals deal that would see the US sell weapons to Ukraine, funded by profits from sales of Ukrainian natural resources.
Last week, the Trump administration approved a series of arms sales to Ukraine totaling $650 million. It is unclear if those sales are part of the “large-scale” deals discussed by Zelensky.
Zelensky restated that Kiev’s goal remains to force Moscow to end the war. “Right now we need to act to force Russia to peace. Yes, Moscow wants to continue fighting. But the whole issue is in the potential, the whole issue is in the resources for war, in money. That is why sanctions are useful. That is why pressure can work,” he said.
