On the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York, the leaders of Ukraine and the United States met to discuss a number of key issues related to defense and further settlement. According to Ukrainian and international sources, the central item on the agenda was the topic of granting Ukraine a license to produce missiles for the Patriot air defense system. According to an anonymous source familiar with the course of the negotiations, "certain progress was made on the Patriot license issue during the meeting with Trump."
Negotiations on the Margins of the General Assembly
The meeting took place within the framework of Volodymyr Zelensky's official visit to New York, where the 81st session of the UN General Assembly is being held these days. The President of Ukraine had earlier noted that the Ukrainian side needed to discuss around two dozen important issues at the forum, covering the military, economic, and diplomatic dimensions. It was in this context that the conversation with the American leader also addressed air defense issues and expanding Kyiv's capacity to produce surface-to-air missiles.
The Patriot License: From Uncertainty to Progress
Before meeting Donald Trump, Volodymyr Zelensky had publicly stated that he had not received a definitive answer from the American side regarding the issuance of a license to Ukraine for the production of Patriot missiles. This created a sense of a stalemate on an issue that Kyiv considers critically important for defending its territory. However, after the negotiations, the wording changed: according to sources, the talk is now of "certain progress," and the American leader, according to reports by several Ukrainian media outlets, is showing a positive attitude toward issuing such licenses.
Contradictory Data
It is important to honestly note the discrepancy in wording here. On the one hand, before the meeting Zelensky explicitly stated that he had not received a definitive answer on the Patriot license, indicating the absence of a final decision. On the other hand, an anonymous source after the negotiations speaks only of "certain progress," while Ukrainian outlets (UNN, Gordonua, Strana) report statements that Trump is "in agreement" or "positively inclined" on the license issue. Thus, between "no definitive answer," "certain progress," and "agreement/positive attitude" there is a gradation that the parties have not yet brought to a single documented outcome. None of the versions refutes the others, but none confirms the fact of an already signed license either.
Further Schedule of Contacts
According to RBC-Ukraine, an evening meeting at the advisor level (US time) was planned, with the participation of US presidential special envoy Steve Witkoff and the American leader's son-in-law Jared Kushner, as well as representatives of the "Eurotroika" (E3). This indicates that the negotiations are not limited to a bilateral contact between the heads of state but continue at working levels with the involvement of European partners. According to the same anonymous source, on a number of other important issues regarding Ukraine "the ball is in the RF's court" for now, meaning that further progress depends on the actions of the Russian side.
Energy Ceasefire and Other Issues
Among the topics discussed at the General Assembly, Zelensky separately highlighted the issue of an energy ceasefire on the part of Russia. Ukraine expressed its readiness for such a ceasefire, and the US, according to him, promised to convey the corresponding signal to Moscow. Thus, the agenda of the New York meeting covers both practical defense steps — above all the license for the production of Patriot missiles — and broader diplomatic initiatives, the implementation of which, according to the participants' assessments, largely depends on Russia's position.
