Mascow: The United States has secured $1.5 billion in arms sales to Ukraine through European pledges, just hours before the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska.
The announcement followed a virtual meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and officials from Finland, France, Britain, Italy, Poland, the EU, and NATO, with US President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance also joining.
Zelensky said the funds, pledged under NATO’s Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List initiative, will enable member states to jointly purchase US-made weapons, boosting Ukraine’s defense capabilities. Reports indicate the Netherlands and Germany each contributed $500 million, while Denmark, Norway, and Sweden pledged a combined $500 million.
European leaders reportedly agreed to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP, leading to greater reliance on US-produced armaments due to limited domestic manufacturing.On the eve of the summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with senior ministers to discuss a potential nuclear arms deal as part of wider negotiations over the war in Ukraine.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Friday’s initial meeting with Trump will be limited, focusing on the “settlement of the Ukrainian crisis” as well as trade, economic cooperation, and global security, with the possibility of broader talks later.Trump recently suggested a “swapping of territories” as part of a ceasefire, an idea Zelensky rejected, vowing not to surrender any Ukrainian land.
Kyiv is demanding an unconditional ceasefire, retention of all captured territory, $1 trillion in reparations from Russia, NATO membership, and the release of all prisoners. Ukrainian parliamentary foreign affairs chair Oleksandr Merezhko voiced skepticism about the Alaska talks, saying he expected “no breakthrough.”
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry announced the capture of Suvorovo and Nikanorovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic, part of four provinces it claims to have annexed since 2022, in addition to Crimea, seized in 2014.
Previous peace efforts, including Turkish-hosted talks last month and US-Russia negotiations in Saudi Arabia in March, have failed to deliver results. While pursuing discussions with Moscow, Trump pledged “massive” weapons shipments to Ukraine and issued a 50-day deadline for a deal, threatening 100% tariffs on Russia if talks collapse.
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