Trump’s Tomahawk No-Go Leaves Kyiv Waiting, Putin Watching

The ask was simple enough. Volodymyr Zelensky walked into the White House on October 17, aiming to lock in Tomahawk cruise missiles, long reach with proven punch. He walked out with a polite no and a caution flag. According to multiple accounts of the meeting, Donald Trump declined to greenlight Tomahawks, citing escalation risks and the need to mind U.S. stockpiles while he chases a deal to halt the war. The session was described as tough, not easy, and short on breakthroughs.

The timing matters. Trump had spoken with Vladimir Putin shortly before sitting down with Zelensky. That call appears to have shifted the center of gravity away from arming Ukraine and toward a ceasefire push that freezes lines where they are. Reporting in

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