On Wednesday, July 8, 2026, the second day of the 38th NATO Summit in Ankara, US President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in what was described as a positive atmosphere. The most notable statement from Trump concerned interceptor missiles for Ukraine’s MIM-104 Patriot air and missile defense systems.
BREAKING: Trump to Zelensky:
We are gonna give you a license to make Patriots.
This way he can’t complain that we are not giving him enough.
Make them yourself. pic.twitter.com/HZFarZce0a
— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 8, 2026
“We are gonna give you a license to make Patriots,” – said Trump to Zelensky. “This way he can’t complain that we are not giving him enough. Make them yourself.”
Trump on Ukraine:
We need Patriots too.
I think they can produce them very quickly once we explain it. pic.twitter.com/zS4iEkPwrm
— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 8, 2026
“We need Patriots too. I think they can produce them very quickly once we explain it,” added Trump.
Reporter: Will you allow Europe to make Patriot interceptors in Europe?
Trump: Well, we’re going to talk about that, you know, look. It’s a defensive weapon, which I like better than an offensive weapon. pic.twitter.com/mpcEwghzpB
— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 8, 2026
Asked by journalists whether the United States would allow European countries to produce Patriot interceptor missiles locally, Trump indicated that discussions remained open.
“Well, we’re going to talk about that, you know, look. It’s a defensive weapon, which I like better than an offensive weapon,” Trump said.
Trump on Zelensky & Ukraine:
I think he’ll build a great country. I think he’s going to build it.
We have a little stake in that country now because we have some land in that country.
But we have minerals. It’s among the wealthiest. It’s among the best land anywhere in the… pic.twitter.com/EgFcsNcUjc
— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 8, 2026
At the same time, the US president emphasized his positive attitude toward Volodymyr Zelensky and pointed to direct geopolitical and economic ties with Ukraine.
“I think he’ll build a great country. I think he’s going to build it. We have a little stake in that country now because we have some land in that country. But we have minerals. It’s among the wealthiest. It’s among the best land anywhere in the world for rare earth.”
Trump on Ukraine’s strikes on Russian refineries:
It’s an escalation that can help lead to an end. pic.twitter.com/CeGpFCHIkV
— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 8, 2026
Donald Trump also commented on the ongoing drone campaign against Russia’s petrochemical industry (Ukraine continues strikes on Russia’s petrochemical industry).
“It’s an escalation that can help lead to an end.” – he said.
Trump on Russia-Ukraine War:
Well, we’ve settled a lot of wars. And this one is the one that I thought maybe would be the easiest.
But Putin’s a difficult character, and this guy’s a difficult character.
It’s not the easiest, not the easiest thing. It is a lot of commitment. pic.twitter.com/ROY0QTBv3V
— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 8, 2026
However, he emphasized once again, as he has since taking office, that ending the Russian-Ukrainian war is not an easy task.
“Well, we’ve settled a lot of wars. And this one is the one that I thought maybe would be the easiest. But Putin’s a difficult character, and this guy’s a difficult character. It’s not the easiest, not the easiest thing. It is a lot of commitment.”
Later, on the Truth Social platform, the US president wrote:
“President Zelenskyy and I just had a News Conference with the Fake News. It went very well. Everybody is looking for a solution. Very positive! President DONALD J. TRUMP”
Photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
MILMAG commentary
Donald Trump’s statement on a license to produce interceptor missiles for Ukraine’s MIM-104 Patriot systems, something Kyiv had been seeking for many months, is surprising. This is especially the case as only yesterday the defense ministries of Norway, Denmark, Germany, and Canada announced the joint purchase of these missiles from the United States under NATO’s assistance financing mechanism known as PURL, the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List.
Earlier, on April 14 this year, the COMLOG joint venture, composed of US company Raytheon/RTX and Germany’s MBDA Deutschland, part of the European MBDA consortium, received an order for deliveries of PAC-2 GEM-T interceptors to Ukraine worth 3.7 billion USD. The deliveries are being financed by the German federal government.
Ukraine has around 10–12 Patriot system batteries, although the exact number is classified. They come from donations by the United States, with three batteries; Germany, with five batteries; Norway, with one battery; the Kingdom of the Netherlands, with five launchers; Romania, with one battery; and Israel, with an unknown number (New U.S. Support Package for Ukrainian Patriots And Approval for Modernization).