Trump to Send Patriot Missiles to Ukraine, Signals New Russia Sanctions

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday, July 13, that Washington will supply Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine and hinted at fresh sanctions against Russia, voicing renewed frustration with President Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s protracted war in Ukraine.

Speaking to reporters at Joint Base Andrews after returning from the FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey, Trump confirmed the decision, saying:

“We will send them Patriots, which they desperately need. I haven’t agreed on the number yet, but they’re going to have some because they do need protection.”

The move marks a reversal of the White House’s earlier stance this month to pause certain arms shipments to Kyiv. Under the new arrangement, NATO is expected to finance part of the weapons package by paying the U.S. directly.

“We basically are going to send them various pieces of very sophisticated military [equipment], and they’re going to pay us 100 percent for them,” Trump said. “It’ll be business for us.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently stated that Kyiv was “close to reaching a multi-level agreement on new Patriot systems and missiles.”

Trump’s pledge came shortly before he teased a “major statement… on Russia” expected on Monday, coinciding with a busy diplomatic day that includes meetings between the U.S. special envoy and Ukrainian officials, as well as Trump’s talks with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Washington.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has dragged on for over three years, with intensified Russian strikes this summer and no breakthrough yet from U.S.-led diplomatic efforts.

Expressing exasperation with the Russian leader, Trump remarked:

“Putin really surprised a lot of people. He talks nice and then he bombs everybody in the evening.”

After returning to the White House in January, Trump initially voiced hopes of working with Putin to end the conflict and resisted expanding sanctions—a stance that contrasted with America’s European allies. However, Moscow has continued to reject U.S.-backed ceasefire proposals, prompting growing calls in Congress for tougher measures.

Pressed on potential new sanctions, Trump hinted at developments to come:

“We’re going to see what we will see tomorrow, OK?” he said, referencing his meeting with NATO’s Rutte.

Earlier Sunday, U.S. senators unveiled a bipartisan bill granting Trump broad powers to impose sweeping sanctions on Russia.

“It would give President Trump the ability to impose 500 percent tariffs on any country that helps Russia,” Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said on CBS News, citing potential targets like China, India, or Brazil. “This is truly a sledgehammer available to President Trump to end this war.”

Graham and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, who also plan to meet with Rutte on Monday, said the proposed legislation would allow the U.S. to seize frozen Russian assets in Europe and America to support Ukraine’s reconstruction.

“The $5 billion that the United States has also could be accessed, and I think it’s time to do it,” Blumenthal added.

President Zelensky welcomed the senators’ proposal in a statement on X (formerly Twitter), writing:

“Without a doubt, this is exactly the kind of leverage that can bring peace closer and make sure diplomacy is not empty.”