Zelenskiy says he will meet Trump in Washington on Friday

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that he would meet U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington on Friday, where the two would discuss Ukraine's air defence and long-range strike capabilities.



The two leaders spoke on both Saturday and Sunday amid intensifying discussions about the potential provision of long-range Tomahawk missiles to Kyiv, and a Ukrainian delegation led by Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko is slated to visit Washington before the Friday meeting.



Kyiv has been lobbying Washington to supply the U.S.-produced missiles, which have the capacity to hit Moscow, but which Ukrainians say would be used only on military targets. Moscow has said such a move would represent a serious escalation.



Zelenskiy said he had given Trump, who has increasingly signalled frustration with Russia in recent weeks, an idea of how many of the coveted Tomahawks Ukraine needs.