{"id":156948,"date":"2025-07-14T13:26:58","date_gmt":"2025-07-14T13:26:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/trump-to-meet-nato-chief-ahead-of-expected-major-statement-on-ukraine-bbc\/"},"modified":"2025-07-14T13:26:58","modified_gmt":"2025-07-14T13:26:58","slug":"trump-to-meet-nato-chief-ahead-of-expected-major-statement-on-ukraine-bbc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/trump-to-meet-nato-chief-ahead-of-expected-major-statement-on-ukraine-bbc\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump to meet Nato chief ahead of expected \u2018major\u2019 statement on Ukraine – BBC"},"content":{"rendered":"

US President Donald Trump is expected to make what he's called a "major" statement<\/a> today, after saying the US will send Ukraine "various pieces" of "very sophisticated"<\/a> military equipment
He meets Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte<\/a> in the White House at 10:00 local time (15:00 BST)
Ukrainians are tentatively welcoming reports of US arms shipments, but they're also wary<\/i>, writes our correspondent in Kyiv<\/a>
Meanwhile, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky says he has had "productive" talks<\/a> with the US envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, in Kyiv today
In Russia, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov says<\/a> it's "very important" talks over Ukraine continue
This video can not be played
Trump to supply Ukraine with Patriot missile defence systems
Edited by Jack Burgess and Adam Durbin, with Charlotte Gallagher in Kyiv and Vitaliy Shevchenko
As we've been reporting, we\u2019re expecting a \u201cmajor\u201d statement from Donald Trump later today, which could well be about the war in Ukraine.
But if you've just joined us, or are in need of a quick catch-up, here's the latest:
We've got a little more detail from Ukrainian President Zelensky's meeting today<\/a> with the US envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg.
In a statement, the Ukrainian president's office says the pair have been discussing the prospect of a ceasefire, as well as the purchase of weapons to defend Ukraine.
It describes how the meeting "also focused on the overall front-line situation" as well as "the needs of Ukrainian warriors", for whom Kellogg expressed his respect.
The statement also says after Trump suggested the US would be sending Patriot missile defence systems to Ukraine<\/a>, Zelensky "confirmed Ukraine\u2019s readiness to purchase American weapons, particularly air defence systems".
"The parties also discussed joint drone production, the possibility of direct purchases of Ukrainian UAVs by the United States, and the potential for arms procurement in co-operation with European partners," it adds.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Bernd Debusmann Jr<\/strong>
White House reporter<\/span>
We still don't have clear and precise details of what President Trump plans to announce later today. But some lawmakers have been vocally pushing him to announce additional sanctions on Russia.
One bipartisan bill, which has the support of 85 of 100 US senators, would levy extremely high tariffs of up to 500% on imports from countries that purchase Russian oil, gas and uranium.
One of the bill's authors, South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham, has repeatedly described those tariffs as a "sledgehammer" that could bring Russia to the negotiating table.
"We're going after the people who keep Putin in business, and additional sanctions on Russia itself," Graham told CBS News, the BBC's US partner, adding "that's the money Putin used to prosecute the war".
Additionally, some lawmakers have hinted that the US, together with European allies, could access frozen Russian assets, including $5bn (\u00a33.7bn) frozen by US authorities.
This money could then be used in a trust account for Ukraine to use.
The step, however, would be unprecedented. No US president has ever taken the central bank assets of a foreign country that the US is not at war with.
Germany's defence ministry says there are very positive signs from Washington on the sale of Patriot air defence systems to Ukraine.
A spokesperson says that talks are now being held on the logistics of the deal, which examines, among other things, "how many systems there will be, who will take them over and how they will be financed."
Defence Minister Boris Pistorius will meet his US counterpart Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon later today.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Bernd Debusmann Jr<\/strong>
White House reporter<\/span>
It's still early morning in the US, where President Trump will meet with Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte at the White House at 10:00 local time (15:00 BST).
For the moment, that meeting is taking place behind closed-doors, with no access for the "pool" of White House reporters.
These meetings, however, often open up to reporters with little notice, meaning that it's still possible that we see Trump on camera.
At noon local time, Trump will also participate in a luncheon of the White House Faith Office. Journalists will be allowed into the event – and many are likely to fire questions about today's announcement in Trump's direction.
As always, we could also hear from Trump, at any point, via posts on Truth Social.
There is no White House briefing scheduled today.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Charlotte Gallagher<\/strong>
Reporting from Kyiv<\/span>
An air raid alert sounded almost as soon as pictures were released of President Zelensky meeting the US special envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg.
Ukraine says it was a Russian fighter jet taking off.
The alert was over in minutes, but underlines – particularly to VIP visitors like Kellogg – the ongoing threat in the skies over Ukraine.
Ukrainians are used to these alerts, many have a smartphone app which warns them, and you can hear the public sirens blaring out.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Paul Adams<\/strong>
Diplomatic correspondent<\/span>
While the Trump administration ponders the wisdom of sending more weapons to Ukraine, one of Russia\u2019s most important allies is upping the scale of its involvement.
North Korea\u2019s leader, Kim Jon Un, has offered his \u201cunconditional support\u201d to Moscow, according to state media reports following a visit to Pyongyang by Russia\u2019s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov.
Last year, North Korea sent an estimated 11,000 troops to join the fight against Ukraine.
Earlier this month, some reports suggested that Pyongyang might send another 25,000 to 30,000 troops.
But North Korea has also become a vital source of ammunition for Russia.
Last week, the head of Ukraine\u2019s Defence Intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, told Bloomberg News that North Korea was supplying up to 40% of the ammunition Russia is using against Ukraine.
Ukraine says Russia is making use of a variety of North Korean long range artillery systems, including howitzers and multiple launch rocket systems.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has finished his meeting with US special envoy Keith Kellogg, and describes it as a "productive conversation".
Posting on X, external<\/span><\/a>, Zelensky says the pair discussed what the US and Ukraine "can practically do" to bring peace to Ukraine closer.
"This includes strengthening Ukraine\u2019s air defence, joint production, and procurement of defence weapons in collaboration with Europe. And of course, sanctions against Russia and those who help it," Zelensky says.
He goes on to add that Kyiv is hoping for US leadership, and "it is clear that Moscow will not stop unless its unreasonable ambitions are curbed through strength."
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Bernd Debusmann Jr<\/strong>
White House reporter<\/span>
In February, I had a chance to ask several questions to Donald Trump regarding the war in Ukraine and his relationship with Vladimir Putin.
The answers he gave at the time were starkly different in substance and tone to what we've been hearing from the US president recently.
At various points on Air Force One and at Mar-a-Lago, he said – with almost no hesitation – that he trusted his counterpart in Moscow, and seemed to suggest that Ukraine was partly to blame for the war.
"You should have never started it," he said of the government in Kyiv. "You could have made a deal."
These sort of comments continued for months, along with often vague promises that peace or a ceasefire was just around the corner.
More recently, however, his exasperation has become increasingly clear, saying he's "very angry" and pleading "Vladimir, stop!".
Whether any specific prompted his expected announcement of additional weapons remains unclear, but US media outlet Axios has reported that the decision came after a call with Putin in which he indicated that further Russian offensives to seize ground would come in the next 60 days.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Paul Adams<\/strong>
Diplomatic correspondent<\/span>
There\u2019s every indication that Donald Trump has reached an inflection point in his curious relationship with Vladimir Putin.
It\u2019s clear that he\u2019s increasingly disappointed that a man he prefers to regard as a friend has let him down.
After the shudder of horror in Kyiv that greeted the Pentagon\u2019s decision two weeks ago to suspend weapons deliveries, Ukraine is now cautiously optimistic that the US \u2013 its most important ally \u2013 is once again on its side.
That\u2019s certainly what Ukraine\u2019s most prominent supporters in Congress are hoping.
"The game, regarding Putin's invasion of Russia, is about to change,\u201d South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham told CBS News on Sunday.
\u201cI expect, in the coming days, you will see weapons flowing at a record level to help Ukraine defend themselves.\u201d
But what is Donald Trump\u2019s game plan? Is this a negotiating ploy designed to force Vladimir Putin back to the negotiating table, or a return to Joe Biden\u2019s mantra that the US will do \u201cwhatever it takes\u201d to support Ukraine \u201cfor as long as it takes.\u201d
Some clues may come in the sort of weaponry the White House is now proposing to send to Ukraine.
Patriot air defence systems are vital to protect Ukraine from Russia\u2019s frequent bombardments, but are, as the name suggests, purely defensive in nature.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Vitaliy Shevchenko<\/strong>
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring<\/span>
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov is reserved in his comments on reports that the US will be supplying additional weaponry to Ukraine.
At his daily press briefing, he has stopped short of directly criticising Washington after Donald Trump said he'd be sending "sophisticated" equipment to Ukraine.
"A lot of words have been said about how expensive it is and so on. Now it looks like European countries will be paying for these supplies. Something they'll pay for, something they won't. But the fact remains that supplies of weapons, ammunition and military equipment from the US to Ukraine have continued and are continuing," Peskov says.
When asked about the Kremlin's expectations of US presidential envoy Keith Kellogg's trip to Ukraine, Peskov says: "First of all it is Mr Kellogg and his Ukrainian interlocutors who should have expectations.
"For us, it is very important that Mr Kellogg as Trump's representative continues mediation efforts as part of Russian-Ukrainian settlement."
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Bernd Debusmann Jr<\/strong>
White House reporter<\/span>
Since returning to the White House in January, Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have had something of a troubled relationship.
Trump has, at times, seemingly blamed Zelensky and Ukraine for the war, and Zelensky has said he believes Trump is living in a "disinformation space" created by Russia.
And, of course, there was the now-infamous 28 February Oval Office meeting between Zelensky and Trump's team, which spiralled into acrimony and chaos before the eyes of the world.
More recently, however, Trump has held back from criticising his Ukrainian counterpart in Kyiv – and instead has repeatedly blamed Putin for prolonging the war.
What exactly prompted the shift is unclear.
Part of the reason is likely that both parties have made it clear that the US will be reimbursed for the weapons it sends to Ukraine.
This allows Trump to publicly maintain his "America First" agenda and justify the assistance to reluctant members of his own party that have previously balked at the idea that aid should be "given" to Ukraine with no strings attached.
Since the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, western nations have allocated more than $250bn, (\u00a3205bn) of military, humanitarian and other financial aid to Ukraine. Let's have a look at the type of offensive military equipment which has been given to Ukraine.
Ukraine has been using US-made ATACMS missiles<\/a> which have a range of about 190 miles (300km). In November, former President Joe Biden lifted the ban<\/a>, allowing ATACMS to be fired into Russian territory.
The UK <\/b>and France <\/b>have supplied Ukraine with Storm Shadow or Scalp missiles, which have a maximum range of around 155 miles (250km), and which Ukraine has reportedly fired into Russian territory<\/a>.
At the end of July last year, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine's air force had taken delivery of a batch of F-16 fighter jets from the West<\/a>. He has said many more were needed.
Nato countries, including Belgium<\/b>, Denmark<\/b>, the Netherlands<\/b> and Norway<\/b>, have pledged to give Ukraine 65 or more of the US-made planes, which they had been planning to retire from their air forces.
In early 2023, Western nations agreed to send tanks to Ukraine. It was hoped they would enable its forces to breach Russian defensive lines in a counter-offensive.
The UK <\/b>provided 14 Challenger 2s. European nations have sent more than 200 German<\/b> Leopard 1 and Leopard 2 tanks, according to figures from the Kiel Institute, external<\/span><\/a>. The US <\/b>sent 31 of its M1 Abrams tanks, which are thought to be the most advanced in the world.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>BBC Monitoring<\/strong><\/span>
As Russia ramps up its attacks on Ukraine – we have a bit more on that in our earlier post<\/a> – at least six civilians have been killed in the last 24 hours, according to local authorities:
This video can not be played
Nato boss commends 'daddy' Trump's handling of Israel-Iran conflict
As we reported earlier, Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte is meeting US President Donald Trump at the White House later today. <\/a>
This is the first time the pair will have met since a Nato summit in the Netherlands last month, where during a joint press conference, Rutte jokingly referred to Trump as "Daddy" – a reference to the president's work brokering a ceasefire between Israel and Iran.
"Sometimes daddy has to use strong language," Rutte said to Trump, as the US president described the Israel-Iran conflict.
Trump appeared to have embraced the nickname, with the White House posting "Daddy's home" , external<\/span><\/a>on X as he arrived back in the US following the summit.
Speaking to the Reuters news agencey after the news briefing, Rutte said he used the word "daddy" to describe how some allies see the US, rather than Trump himself.
"In Europe, I hear sometimes countries saying, 'Hey, Mark, will the U.S. stay with us?' And I said that sounds a little bit like a small child asking his daddy, 'Hey, are you still staying with the family,'" Rutte told the outlet.
"So in that sense, I used daddy, (it's) not that I was calling President Trump daddy."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has submitted a bill to the country's parliament to extend martial law and "the term of general mobilisation" until 5 November.
It will be voted on next week.
Ukraine has been under martial law since 24 February 2022, when Russia launched a full-scale invasion of the country.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Vitaliy Shevchenko<\/strong>
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring<\/span>
Yesterday evening, a Russian drone targeted a police car near a river ferry in Kupyansk, in the north eastern Kharkiv region.
Four police officers were injured in the attack, Ukrainian police say.
Meanwhile state emergencies service DSNS says a Russian drone hit a railway locomotive, in Bokove, which is in the east of the Donetsk region, killing two people.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Vitaliy Shevchenko<\/strong>
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring<\/span>
To anyone who has been watching Vladimir Putin since he came to power a quarter of a century ago, he's not changed much, only become bolder and more aggressive.
His forces attacked Ukraine 11 years ago, demonstrating chilling disregard for human life. For instance, at the very beginning, in 2014, they killed more than 360 Ukrainian troops after going back on earlier agreements which would have allowed them to pull out of the eastern town of Ilovaysk.
Similarly, Russia never acknowledged let alone apologised for supplying the missile that shot down Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board. What followed were years of Russia's onslaught on Ukraine, which resulted in whole cities being destroyed and hundreds of thousands of lives lost.
Putin has consistently denied Ukraine the right to exist as an independent nation. In the run-up to the full-scale invasion of 2022, he penned an article "on the historical unity of Russians and Ukrainians", and more recently referred to Ukrainians as "the Ukrainian part of the Russian people".
The increase in Russia's attacks on civilians in Ukraine is a result of his growing ambitions, but also of Western politicians failing to respond over the years.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Vitaliy Shevchenko<\/strong>
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring<\/span>
Dialogue between Russia and the US will continue "despite enormous efforts to disrupt it using whatever means are available", Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev says.
Dmitriev is the head of Russia's sovereign wealth fund who has been involved in talks with the US.
Speaking to journalists in Russia, he also says that efforts to put pressure on Russia are "doomed to fail" and dialogue with the US would work better.
Reflecting on the approach of the previous US administration, Russian news agency RBK quotes Dmitriev as saying: "Biden's mistaken approaches have shown that they are ineffective. His lies are not eternal, and they must and will be corrected. This is a process in which the US side is trying to understand Russia's legitimate interests."
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Charlotte Gallagher<\/strong>
Reporting from Kyiv<\/span>
The relationship between the US and Ukraine appears to be changing – for the better.
There had been concerns in Kyiv about President Trump's apparent admiration for his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
Eyebrows were also raised during the explosive press conference in the Oval Office when President Zelensky visited the US capital and ended up on the receiving end of a public dressing down.
But now Trump is openly frustrated with Moscow, saying that President Putin "talks nice but then he bombs everybody in the evening".
He's confirmed that the US will send Patriot missile defence systems to Ukraine, just two weeks after Washington said it would pause some arms deliveries.
For Ukrainians, it's welcome news, but they're also wary and know from bitter experience that relationships between countries can break down.
Some talk about Ukraine\u2019s need for more self-reliance as Russia seems in no mood to end the invasion.
Copyright \u00a9 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.<\/a><\/p>\n

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