US-Ukraine Rift Deepens as Trump Floats Summit Without Zelenskyy
Zelenskyy says Washington is delaying interceptor deliveries as Trump says Kyiv should send 'somebody else' to negotiate and floats a Putin-Xi summit that would sideline Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the United States is deliberately delaying delivery of interceptor missiles to Kyiv, according to The Guardian, a claim that lands as relations between Washington and Kyiv reach what AP News described as a new low, with President Trump slighting Zelenskyy publicly while easing pressure on Moscow, according to AP News.
The deterioration comes as Russian strikes continue to inflict civilian casualties inside Ukraine. Six people, including children, were killed in a Russian drone strike on a park, according to Al Jazeera, an attack that followed the missile and drone strikes on Kyiv this week that this desk has previously reported.
Trump says Kyiv should send “somebody else”
Trump said Zelenskyy should get “somebody else” to negotiate an end to the war, according to the South China Morning Post, a remark that effectively questions whether Zelenskyy himself should remain the lead Ukrainian negotiator in any settlement talks. PBS reported that Trump escalated his clash with Zelenskyy even as Russia continued deadly attacks on Ukrainian territory, according to PBS.
The remark follows days of friction this desk has tracked since the administration’s sanctions waiver on Russian energy exports first strained the relationship, and since Senate Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker urged Trump and Zelensky to negotiate a mutual halt on strikes against energy infrastructure. Trump’s latest comments suggest the administration is moving further from, not closer to, a negotiating role for Kyiv’s own government in shaping the terms of any settlement.
A summit that could sideline Kyiv
Trump also said he is open to a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss ending the war, without Zelenskyy’s direct participation, according to the Washington Times. AmericaStrikes.com first reported on the proposed three-way summit format when it surfaced via the Kremlin earlier this week, but Trump’s apparent openness to holding the talks without Zelenskyy present marks a sharper break from Washington’s prior insistence that Kyiv have a seat at any table deciding the war’s outcome.
It remains unclear whether a Putin-Trump-Xi summit without Ukrainian participation would produce terms binding on Kyiv, or whether Zelenskyy’s government would be consulted before, during, or only after any such meeting. Neither the Kremlin nor the White House has confirmed a date, location, or agenda.
Interceptor shortage adds urgency
Zelenskyy’s claim that Washington is slow-walking interceptor deliveries compounds a problem this desk has already flagged: Ukraine’s forces have been contending with a shortage of Patriot interceptors tied to the broader pause in US sanctions pressure on Russia. If accurate, a deliberate delay in interceptor shipments would leave Ukrainian air defenses further strained at the same moment Russian strikes on civilian areas, including the drone strike on a park that killed six people, continue without pause.
The Guardian’s report does not specify which interceptor systems or shipments Zelenskyy was referring to, nor has the US government issued a public response disputing or confirming the claim. The Pentagon has separately moved forward on other munitions contracts in the region, including a deal with BAE Systems for 25,000 APKWS rocket kits, though that contract is not tied to the Ukraine theater.
What to watch
The combination of Trump’s “somebody else” remark, the floated Putin-Xi summit without Kyiv, and Zelenskyy’s interceptor-delay claim points toward a widening gap between Washington’s and Kyiv’s visions for how the war ends. Key questions for this desk to track: whether the White House confirms or denies the interceptor-delay claim, whether any Putin-Trump-Xi summit is formally scheduled and whether Ukraine is invited in any capacity, and whether Zelenskyy’s government responds to Trump’s suggestion that Kyiv change its negotiating team.
This is a developing story. AmericaStrikes.com will update as Washington, Kyiv, or Moscow confirm additional details.
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