Trump to meet Zelensky to discuss peace or escalate the war | World | News

Donald Trump won global acclaim on Monday after securing peace in the Middle East during his triumphant visit to Israel.

World leaders rallied behind Trump, supporting his effort to resolve the Ukraine conflict, at a follow-up summit in Sharm el-Sheikh. The US president will host Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House on Friday. The news comes at a time when Russia’s economy is collapsing and a vital sector is facing a ‘once-in-30-year crisis’.

But now sources have told The Telegraph that the American leader is preparing to supply long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine in a dramatic move aimed at ending a brutal war with Russia.

According to Mr. Zelensky, the two will put forward their “vision” for the deployment of the long-range Tomahawk missile to force Vladimir Putin into negotiations.

“The main issues will be air defense and our long-range capabilities to maintain pressure on Russia,” the Ukrainian leader said.

Mr. Trump has put on hold the possibility of sending Tomahawks to Kiev if Putin continues to block any possibility of peace talks.

The president has recently increased intelligence sharing with Ukrainian forces to support their long-range attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, increasing tensions over Russia’s faltering economy.

Middle East victory raises Ukraine’s peace hopes

Mr. Trump touched down in Tel Aviv on Monday to celebrate the freedom of 20 Israeli hostages under an Israel-Hamas ceasefire arrangement.

Following the declaration of permanent peace, he flew to Egypt to meet with world leaders to officially sign the opening phase of the White House agreement to end the Gaza war.

Addressing the Israeli parliament, Mr. Trump announced his intention to turn his focus to negotiations to end the Ukraine-Russia conflict.

“It would be great if we got a peace agreement.” [Iran]… We have to deal with Russia first,” he told the Knesset. “Let’s focus on Russia first.”

Trump claimed eight disputes were resolved

Since the end of the Gaza war, Mr. Trump has boasted of ending eight conflicts following his arrival at the White House in late January.

However, finding a solution to the three-and-a-half-year conflict between Ukraine and Russia has proven difficult and continues to create difficulties. Mr. Trump has struggled to gain leverage in negotiations with Putin.

However, the White House’s defense of the “peace through strength” doctrine in the Middle East on Monday led to new optimism.

Mr Zelensky said the US president said the Israel-Hamas agreement “brings more hope” to other war-torn regions.

The Ukrainian president wrote on social media: “We are working for a day of peace to come for Ukraine as well. Russian aggression remains the last source of global instability, and if a ceasefire and peace is achieved in the Middle East, the leadership and determination of global actors can definitely work for us too.”

Ukrainian delegation starts Washington talks

His prime minister and top aide flew to Washington on Monday to launch “high-level talks to strengthen Ukraine’s defenses, secure our energy resilience, and intensify sanctions pressure on the aggressor.”

While rumors circulate that Mr. Trump may deliver Tomahawks to Ukraine, Mr. Zelensky is preparing to give him a comprehensive list of Russian military facilities that could be hit by the weapons.

Kiev is confident in the weapon’s ability to cripple Moscow’s war machine by cutting off supply lines and destroying missile and drone production facilities.

Tomahawks have a striking range of approximately 1,500 miles, making such areas easily accessible.

Mr Zelensky had previously insisted that the missile would force Putin to come to the negotiating table for ceasefire talks.

Huge increase in US support

Providing the Tomahawks would represent a significant increase in American support and a hardening of Mr. Trump’s attitude towards Putin.

Mr. Trump said sending the missile to Kiev would be “a new step in aggression.”

His predecessor, Joe Biden, rejected Ukraine’s Tomahawk demands.

“I can say, look, if this war is not resolved, I’m going to send them Tomahawks,” Mr. Trump said during a flight to Israel on Sunday.

“Honestly, I might have to talk to Russia about the Tomahawks. Do they want the Tomahawks heading towards them? I don’t think so.”

Referring to Putin, Trump said: “I would tell him that if the war doesn’t resolve, we could very well do this.”

Trump’s anger towards Putin grows

Following the two leaders’ landmark Alaska meeting, Mr. Trump became increasingly frustrated that his Russian counterpart was stonewalling substantive negotiations with Kiev.

Mr. Trump’s warning came after phone calls between him and Mr. Zelensky; The two leaders have forged closer ties since the worst point of a public clash at the White House earlier this year.

Moscow issued a stern warning to the White House against Tomahawk procurement, claiming the action would effectively destroy relations with Washington.

On Sunday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the missiles were “extremely worrying” for Russia, adding: “Tensions are rising from all sides.”

He claimed that Moscow could not determine whether the missiles had nuclear warheads if fired at its territory, and asked: “How should Russia react?”

Putin and his senior officials have refrained from publicly attacking Trump on the missiles in the hope that they can persuade him to abandon the plan.