As US weapons for Ukraine dry up, Kyiv changes tactics

Politico

2 days ago

A second person briefed on the exchange between the two leaders said it was 'productive' and went 'very, very well.'
Zelenskyy gave Trump an update on the state of the war, the second person said, and outlined what kinds of support Kyiv would need from the United States in the future.
Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) said he'd heard that Zelenskyy had modified his aid request from military aid to weapons purchases. Wicker did not attend the NATO summit, though a bipartisan delegation met with European allies there.
'I'm told that President Zelenskyy's request now is less financial aid from the United States and more the ability to use European money to purchase guns and ammunition from us,' he said.
Zelenskyy's office did not immediately respond to questions about the emerging Ukrainian plan or what was discussed during the meeting between the two heads of state.
Trump, who has been repeatedly frustrated in recent weeks by Russian President Vladimir Putin's reticence to come to the bargaining table to end his war on Ukraine, emerged from the meeting more sympathetic to Kyiv's cause than before — and did not rule out sending more Patriot air defense systems.
'They do want to have the anti-missile missiles, as they call them, and we're going to see if we can make some available,' Trump said at a news conference at the end of the NATO summit. 'They're very hard to get.'
But despite the positive interactions between Trump and Zelenskyy, there has been no recent movement to get more American weapons to Ukraine. The issue of weapons transfers gained new urgency this week, after the Pentagon's halt on munitions shipments became public. Defense Department officials had become concerned that U.S. weapons stockpiles were getting low and ordered the partial freeze.
Meanwhile, attempts to clear a fresh round of funding to assist Ukraine have stalled on Capitol Hill. Lawmakers last approved an aid package for Ukraine more than a year ago, when Congress OK'd $61 billion in funding related to arming Kyiv and replenishing U.S. stocks of weapons, along with billions in aid for Israel and other Pacific partners.