Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelensky in US for Trump meeting after President announces new Putin summit

The European Union has unveiled four flagship projects to strengthen its defence capabilities against Russia by 2030, as recent airspace violations show that “Europe is at risk”.

The European Commission will submit the ‘Defence Readiness Roadmap 2030’ to EU leaders next week, essentially presenting them with a checklist of equipment to buy, with hopes of encouraging states to decide who will take the lead on projects. 

The European Drone Defence Initiative 

As a top priority, the plans include the European Drone Defence Initiative, which aims to build counter-drone capabilities to detect, track, and disable rogue drones. The system is expected to be initially operational by December 2026 and fully functional in late 2027.

The Eastern Flank Watch 

The drone system is part of the wider Eastern Flank Watch scheme, which aims to fortify defences along Europe’s eastern border on land, in the Baltic and Black seas, in the sky, and against hybrid operations. It hopes to be fully functional by 2028. 

The European Air Shield aims to protect member states’ airspace by creating an integrated, multi-layered air and missile defence shield to protect against all Russian air threats. 

The European Space Shield

The fourth project is the European Space Shield, which aims to protect space assets and services against growing threats.

Donald Trump has suggested that the US may need to keep its Tomahawk missiles for itself, as Zelensky is expected to push for its supply at their meeting tomorrow.

He said: “Tomahawks. We have a lot of them, but we need them. We can’t deplete” US stockpiles, the BBC reported.

The Russian president has warned Trump that supplying Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine would harm peace prospects and damage US-Russia relations, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters.

Trump said: “I did actually say to him, ‘Would you mind if I gave a couple of thousands of Tomahawks to your opposition?’ I did say that to him. I said it just like that. He didn’t like that idea,” according to the BBC.

“You have to be a bit light-hearted sometimes.”

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said preparations for Putin and Trump’s summit in Budapest were underway.

Posting on X after a phone call with Trump, the president said: “Hungary is the island of PEACE!”

He previously said the meeting was “great news for the peace-loving people of the world.”

Zelensky expects the momentum from the ceasefire will help end the Ukraine war as Moscow tries to renew its dialogue after Trump threatened to supply Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles.

In a post on X, the president said: “Putin is certainly no braver than Hamas or any other terrorist. The language of strength and justice will inevitably work against Russia as well.

“We can already see that Moscow is rushing to resume dialogue as soon as it hears about Tomahawks.

“There must be no alternative but peace and reliably guaranteed security – and it is crucial to protect people from Russian strikes and assaults as soon as possible.”

Nigel Farage supports shooting down Russian fighter jets that violate Nato airspace, as he calls Putin “a very bad dude”.

“Clearly, Putin is not a rational man,” Farage said in an interview with Bloomberg.

“The idea that I’m soft on this is just nonsense.”

Farage has faced criticism that his stance on Moscow could hurt his chance of becoming Prime Minister.

In the interview on Thursday, he said he would support spending frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine, and may even deploy British troops to the country if he were to become PM.

Trump and Putin will meet in Budapest in the next two weeks, while foreign ministers Marco Rubio and Sergei Lavrov will speak beforehand.

Speaking at the White House, Trump said: “We have a problem, they don’t get along too well, those two,” Trump says, arguing that this requires separate meetings,” Sky News reported.

“This is a terrible relationship the two of them have.”

Trump and Putin’s phone call was initiated by Moscow, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.

The pair are now planning to meet in Budapest soon, the location of which was suggested by Trump and immediately agreed to by Putin, Mr Ushakov said.

He said the two countries will now quickly prepare for the summit, and the timing of the meeting will depend on how the preparations go.

Zelensky has landed in Washington ahead of his visit to the Oval Office on Friday.

In the meantime, he is having meetings with defence company representatives, who produce powerful weapons that can strengthen Ukraine’s protection, he said. He is planning to seek out additional supplies of air defence systems.

Zelensky will also meet with energy companies.

“Now, as Russia is betting on terror against our energy sector and carrying out daily strikes, we are working to ensure Ukraine’s resilience,” he said.