US President Donald Trump has issued a high-stakes warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin: end the war in Ukraine or face the prospect of long-range US Tomahawk cruise missiles being supplied to Kyiv.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump confirmed that he and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed Ukraine’s request for the powerful weaponry.
The Threat of the Tomahawk
- Extreme Range: Tomahawk missiles have a range of up to 2,500 km (1,550 miles), making them capable of striking targets deep inside Russia, including Moscow.
- Leverage for Peace: Trump is using the potential missile transfer as a lever to force a settlement. “I might tell him (Putin), if the war is not settled, we may very well do it,” he stated. “Do they want to have Tomahawks going in their direction? I don’t think so.”
- A “New Step of Aggression”: Even Trump acknowledged that introducing the missiles would be considered a “new step of aggression” and has been hesitant to approve the deal, pending assurances on Ukraine’s planned use.
Ukraine’s Stance and Russia’s Warning
President Zelenskyy confirmed that he is still working to convince Trump to approve the deal. The Ukrainian leader sought to reassure the U.S. and its allies, stating that Kyiv would only use the long-range missiles for military goals, vowing: “We never attacked their civilians.“
Meanwhile, President Putin has strongly cautioned against the move, warning that supplying Tomahawks would trigger a “qualitatively new stage of escalation.” Russia asserts that the complex missile system could not be used without the direct involvement of US military personnel.
Zelenskyy, however, sees Russia’s alarm as a positive sign. In a recent address, he noted: “We see and hear that Russia is afraid that the Americans may give us Tomahawks—that this kind of pressure may work for peace.”
The ongoing conflict remains Europe’s deadliest since World War II, with Russian officials framing the situation as a “hot” conflict between Moscow and the West.
Would you like me to focus on a specific aspect of this story, like the technical capabilities of the Tomahawk missile, or perhaps how this compares to other weapons the US has provided?
