Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said President Donald Trump has become more encouraged by Ukraine’s battlefield position as Kyiv intensifies drone strikes inside Russia and seeks more air-defense support from the West.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said President Donald Trump’s view of the Russia-Ukraine war has grown more optimistic as Ukraine expands its long-range drone campaign and demonstrates its ability to strike strategic targets inside Russia.
Speaking to the Financial Times before this week’s NATO summit in Turkey, Zelenskyy said Trump has taken note of Ukraine’s recent military performance and its use of drones against Russian targets.
“President Trump wants to be where there’s success,” Zelenskyy said, adding that Trump recently told him Ukraine was “doing very well” with its drone operations.
Zelenskyy said the war is moving into a different stage, one in which air power, drone capabilities and technological advantage matter more than traditional territorial gains. He said Ukraine had already slowed Russia’s advance on the ground and pushed much of Moscow’s fleet out of the western Black Sea.
“Today, I believe victory in this war belongs to whoever is smarter,” Zelenskyy told the Financial Times.
After those land and naval developments, Zelenskyy said, “the next battlefield becomes the sky.”
The Ukrainian leader said Kyiv’s most urgent vulnerability remains its shortage of advanced air-defense systems. He specifically pointed to the need for U.S.-made Patriot interceptors, which are capable of stopping Russian ballistic missiles.
The need for air defenses remains acute. Ukraine faced another deadly Russian missile and drone barrage this week, showing that Moscow’s attacks continue despite diplomatic efforts and public discussion of possible negotiations.
Trump spoke about the war Tuesday while appearing alongside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He said he had recently spoken with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskyy and suggested both leaders were interested in reaching an agreement.
“I had a very good talk with [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin,” Trump told reporters. “I also spoke with President Zelenskyy right after that. I think they both want to make a deal.”
Trump said he believes a settlement remains possible even after years of fighting.
“I settled eight wars, and I think we’re going to be settling a ninth,” Trump said. “I think we’re going to get it settled hopefully soon.”
The president also described the conflict as increasingly shaped by unmanned weapons.
“It’s a drone war. It’s a war of drones,” Trump said. “I’ve seen the battlefields. … It’s carnage, and it should stop.”
Trump has continued to emphasize that his primary goal is to end the war through negotiations. At the same time, NATO leaders are watching whether his more favorable assessment of Ukraine’s military position will lead to additional Western assistance, especially air-defense interceptors that Kyiv says it needs to counter Russia’s escalating missile strikes, the Financial Times separately reported.
Trump also contrasted his approach to Ukraine military assistance with that of former President Joe Biden, saying European allies are now paying the United States for equipment intended for Kyiv.
“When [former President Joe] Biden was here, he gave them hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of equipment,” Trump said. “Now, I sell the equipment for, you know, fair price, the full price. And I sell it not to Ukraine.
“I sell it to the European Union. They pay us.”
Zelenskyy’s comments came as NATO allies met in Turkey with Ukraine’s air-defense needs still high on the agenda. Kyiv is pressing for more interceptors while arguing that its growing drone capabilities have changed the strategic picture and improved its position against Russia.
Trump has voiced optimism that a deal can be reached, but he has also acknowledged the severity of the fighting and the increasing role of drones on the battlefield. For Ukraine, Zelenskyy said the immediate challenge is to turn battlefield adaptation into stronger protection from Russian missile and drone attacks.
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