Moment Trump asks Zelensky to go to Moscow amid | Political News

President Donald Trump had an awkward second with Volodymyr Zelensky during a bilateral assembly in Turkey.

Amid a NATO summit, the 2 presidents met to focus on the continued struggle in Ukraine by Russian forces. While talking with reporters, Trump said that Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet with Zelensky, and he hopes that it is going to occur “soon.”

“One of the things I talked to him about was that I asked him, ‘Where would you want to meet?’ He said, ‘ideally in Moscow.’ I said, ‘You’re not gonna meet in Moscow.” It would not work,” said the U.S. president, including that he would not imagine Zelensky would go to Moscow.

“Maybe he would. Would you go to Moscow?” Trump asked, turning toward his Ukrainian counterpart. Zelensky explained that the travel would be difficult. “There are a lot of Ukrainian drones,” he said, earning laughter from the room. “It’s harmful.”

Trump was viciously mocked online for the odd comment, while others praised Zelensky’s quick wit. “You can see Trump struggling to discover phrases,” wrote one person.

“Zelensky is so fed up with this s–t, and I’m right here for it,” wrote another person. A third person wrote: “Zelensky controlling the room is insane. Look at Trump struggling to discover his direction.”

Ukraine has launched several strikes targeting Russian oil refineries. Earlier this week, the country’s largest refinery in Siberia was attacked.

The Gazprom Neft-operated refinery, situated on the outskirts of Omsk in western Siberia, was shown ablaze at multiple locations in NASA satellite imagery and social media footage cited by the Ukrainian military on Monday, July 6.

The refinery sits approximately 1,550 miles (2,500km) from the Ukrainian border. “An affect with subsequent fire was recorded on the territory [of the refinery]. The extent of the injury is being verified,” Ukraine’s General Staff announced in a Facebook statement, adding: “This is the last of the 11 largest gasoline producers in Russia that have been hit.”

The strikes represent the first time the Omsk region has been targeted in a Ukrainian drone attack since the 2022 invasion.

Ukraine gets license to produce Patriot missiles

Following their meeting, President Trump revealed that he had offered Ukraine the right to produce Patriot interceptor missiles, which could help Kyiv defend against Russian ballistic missile attacks.

“We are gonna provide you with a license to make Patriots,” Trump told Zelensky. “I believe they will produce them in a short time once we clarify it.”

The U.S. president said he hasn’t informed defense manufacturers Lockheed Martin and Raytheon of his decision, “but that’ll work out all proper.”

Only 600 missiles are produced a year, according to the Department of Defense, making the U.S. reluctant to part with any, given that more than half of its stockpile has been used during the war against Iran earlier this year, reported the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“We have Patriots, but we do not have that many. We need them for ourselves, too,” Trump said.