by WorldTribune Staff, July 11, 2025 Real World News
New defensive weaponry that the United States is supplying to Ukraine will be paid for in full by NATO, U.S. President Donald Trump said.
“NATO is paying for those weapons, 100 percent,” Trump said. “So what we’re doing is the weapons that are going out are going to NATO, and then NATO is going to be giving those weapons [to Ukraine], and NATO is paying for those weapons.”
Trump made the comments during an interview with NBC News, where he also expressed disappointment with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the lack of progress toward ending the conflict, which began in February 2022.
Trump also said he plans to make a major statement about Russia on July 14. He declined to provide further details regarding the statement.
Any weapons sent to Ukraine since Jan. 20, 2025 were authorized by the Biden Administration.
The latest decision to send additional defensive weapons to Ukraine comes after Washington paused shipments of some arms to the country on July 2 as part of what the Pentagon said was a capability review to ensure that military aid aligns with U.S. defense priorities.
Trump had defended the decision while criticizing his predecessor, whom he accused of having prioritized Ukraine’s defense over that of the United States.\
“Biden emptied out our whole country giving them weapons, and we have to make sure that we have enough for ourselves,” Trump told reporters on July 3.
Trump said the deal was finalized during the NATO summit last month.
“We send weapons to NATO, and NATO is going to reimburse the full cost of those weapons,” he added.
The Pentagon said on July 7 that it is sending more defensive weapons to Ukraine which has been under heavy attack by Russia in recent weeks, with many of the attacks primarily targeting the capital of Kyiv.
In a statement, the Department of Defense said: “At President Trump’s direction, the Department of Defense is sending additional defensive weapons to Ukraine to ensure the Ukrainians can defend themselves while we work to secure a lasting peace and ensure the killing stops.”
The Pentagon did not state which weapons would be sent.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been asking Washington to sell it more Patriot missiles and systems, which he sees as critical to the nation’s defense amid intensifying Russian air strikes.
Speaking at a press conference on July 10 after meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Trump administration is talking to countries in Europe about sharing Patriot batteries with Ukraine.
“There are other Patriot batteries and there are other opportunities. Countries that have ordered Patriot batteries that are about to receive shipments of them, it’d be great if one of them volunteered to defer that shipment and send it to Ukraine instead,” Rubio said.
Rubio added that Washington is looking for “creative ways” to provide Ukraine with defensive weapons.
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