'Not sure': Trump pours cold water on Ukraine's Patriot missile dream after Zelensky's claim
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "'Not sure': Trump pours cold water on Ukraine's Patriot missile dream after Zelensky's claim")
This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service on July 28, 2026, shows Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky (L) speaking with US President Donald Trump during their meeting in Washington, DC, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Photograph: (AFP)
Days after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, US President Donald Trump has said Washington has not yet decided whether to allow Ukraine to manufacture Patriot interceptor missiles. Here's all you need to know about the “will he, won’t he” situation.
US President Donald Trump has said his administration has not yet decided whether it will allow Ukraine to manufacture Patriot interceptor missiles, tempering expectations after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed Washington had agreed to grant production licences.
In an interview with the Financial Times on Thursday (Jul 30), Trump said the proposal remains under consideration, stressing that the US is cautious about sharing advanced military technology.
Trump 'not sure' about giving Ukraine Patriot technology
"I'm not sure. We're looking at it," Trump said when asked whether Ukraine would receive a licence to produce Patriot missiles. "It's a very extraordinary weapon, and we have to be a little bit careful of who we licence to. We don't really licence equipment."
His remarks come just two days after hosting Zelensky at the White House, where the Ukrainian leader described the talks as productive and said Patriot missile production had featured prominently in their discussions.
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Following the meeting, Zelensky said Trump had accepted Kyiv's request for production licences and revealed he had also met executives from companies involved in manufacturing the Patriot system.
"I hope that we will do co-production. This is very important," the Ukrainian president said, describing domestic production of interceptors as one of Ukraine's top defence priorities.
Why do Patriot missiles matter for Kyiv?
The Patriot air defence system has become central to Ukraine's efforts to defend its cities from Russian ballistic missile attacks. Kyiv has repeatedly appealed for additional batteries and interceptors as Moscow intensifies long-range strikes across the country.
Trump's latest comments appear more cautious than his remarks at the NATO summit in Turkey earlier this month, when he indicated Washington was prepared to let Ukraine manufacture Patriot missiles under licence.
The system's interceptor missiles are produced by US defence contractors Lockheed Martin and RTX, formerly Raytheon Technologies.
We want peace, not missiles: Trump
Despite the uncertainty over the Patriot proposal, Trump insisted his primary objective remains ending the war rather than expanding weapons production.
"Very simply put, we want the war in Ukraine with Russia ended," he told the newspaper. "I'm not looking for missiles. We're looking for peace." The US president also said his envoys, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, are expected to visit Ukraine in the coming days as part of Washington's diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.
