Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the readiness to conclude an agreement with the United States that would involve supplying Kyiv with Tomahawk missiles in exchange for Ukrainian-made drones.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Negotiations on Military-Technical Cooperation
According to Zelensky, modern warfare has become technological, and relying solely on Tomahawk missiles is insufficient. He emphasized that to effectively strike military targets, hundreds of drones need to be used in conjunction with missiles. Ukraine possesses modern drones but does not have Tomahawk missiles. This is why the official Kyiv has reached out to the US with the corresponding proposal.
“The war has entered a different phase. Now it is a technological war. It is not enough to just use Tomahawks. If you want to target military objectives, you need hundreds of drones that will be used together. We have these drones, but we do not have Tomahawks. That is why we are reaching out to the US… We have a proposal,” Zelensky said.
US Position and Strategic Importance of Tomahawk
US President Donald Trump confirmed Washington’s interest in acquiring Ukrainian drones. He noted that the US is actively developing its own drone technologies but acknowledged the high level of Ukrainian drones. When asked about a possible exchange of missiles for drones, Trump responded affirmatively.
Regarding the transfer of Tomahawks to Ukraine, the American president stated that this issue would be discussed during an upcoming meeting with Zelensky. At the same time, he noted that a final decision has not yet been made, as the US also needs these missiles, but emphasized the necessity of ending the war:
“We need Tomahawks ourselves, but we also need to end this war… We think it is better to end this war without Tomahawks; I think we are close to that,” Trump stated.
Tomahawk missiles, manufactured by RTX, have a range of up to 1,000 miles (over 1,600 km), which significantly exceeds the capabilities of the American ATACMS multiple launch rocket systems currently being actively used by Ukrainian forces. Tomahawk missiles are distinguished by their greater speed and striking power compared to Ukrainian drones, which can strike targets in Russia but often encounter modern enemy air defense systems.
It is worth noting that Ukraine has repeatedly approached Western partners with requests for the transfer of long-range weapons over the past year. At the same time, Kyiv is actively working on developing its own long-range solutions, such as the “Palyanytsya” and “Flamingo” systems, but their combat characteristics do not yet match those of the Tomahawk.