US President Donald Trump has stated that he would be delighted if Ukraine were able to launch strikes against Moscow in response to Russian shelling of Kyiv. According to him, such pressure could force Vladimir Putin to agree to a peace deal more quickly. The US President also added, half-jokingly, that he would supply Ukraine with Tomahawk cruise missiles right now if the United States had any spare stock.
Briefly about the main points
- Trump said he would be delighted if Ukraine were able to retaliate with strikes on Moscow.
- According to him, such pressure could force Putin to agree to a peace deal more quickly.
- The US President also mentioned the possibility of supplying Ukraine with Tomahawk long-range missiles.
- Trump said that he would have given Ukraine Tomahawk missiles if the US had any to spare.
- US stocks of long-range weapons have fallen significantly due to their extensive use.
Trump linked the strikes on Moscow to pressure on Putin
According to the US President, Russia has been carrying out missile and drone strikes on the Ukrainian capital for some time, whilst Ukraine’s ability to retaliate against the Russian capital remains considerably more limited.
Donald Trump said that he would be «happy» if Ukraine could to retaliate against Moscow in the same way that Russia is attacking Kyiv. In his view, following this turn of events Vladimir Putin could move more quickly towards reaching concrete agreements on ending the war.
The statement came following a fresh wave of intense Russian attacks. On 5 August alone a massive attack on Kyiv claimed the lives of at least 17 people, whilst Ukraine has once again highlighted a severe shortage of Patriot interceptors to counter Russian ballistic missiles.
Trump has already asked Zelenskyy about the possibility of a strike on Moscow
Trump has used similar rhetoric in the past.
In July 2025, *The Washington Post* and *The Financial Times*, citing sources, reported that during a telephone conversation with Zelenskyy, Trump had asked whether Ukraine was capable of to launch strikes against Moscow and St Petersburg, provided it is supplied with the appropriate weaponry.
Trump spoke at the time about the need to make the Russians feel the consequences of the war, in order to increase pressure on the Kremlin and to encourage him to enter into negotiations. At the same time, the US President publicly adopted a more cautious stance during that period and, when asked directly by journalists whether Zelenskyy should attack Moscow, replied in the negative.
Therefore, if the full context of this latest remark is confirmed, it will signify a return by Trump to a much harsher line on long-range Ukrainian strikes.
«I’d give them a Tomahawk right now, if I had any to spare»
Trump also touched on the issue Tomahawk — American long-range cruise missiles, which Ukraine had been trying to obtain from the US.
According to a widely quoted remark, the US President said, half-jokingly, that he could now supply such missiles to Kyiv, if America had any spare Tomahawks.
And the problem with US stockpiles is indeed a serious one. In the five months of the war with Iran, the US military has used up virtually the entire available stockpile of certain long-range, high-precision missiles. Tomahawk stockpiles have also fallen sharply.
According to estimates based on Reuters data, the US has used almost half of the existing global stockpile of Tomahawk missiles. Back in March, it was reported that in the first four weeks of the war against Iran alone, the US military had fired more than 850 such missiles.
On 6 August, Trump himself acknowledged that stocks of some US weapons were running low, and announced an increase in production, particularly of Patriot and Tomahawk missiles.
Tomahawks can strike targets 2,500 kilometres away
The Tomahawk is one of the longest-range systems that Ukraine has requested from Washington.
Depending on the variant, the missile is capable of engaging ground targets at a range of approximately 2500 km, which theoretically makes it possible to reach a large number of military targets deep within Russian territory.
In 2025, the Trump administration was already seriously considering the possibility of supplying such weapons to Ukraine. The President even warned Moscow that he might agree to supply Tomahawk missiles if Russia did not take steps to bring the war to an end.
However, the handover never took place. Reuters reported at the time that one of the key obstacles was limited US reserves, as well as issues relating to launch systems and the risks of escalation.
Following the large-scale use of Tomahawk missiles in the war with Iran, the issue of stockpiles has become even more acute for Washington.
Ukraine is already stepping up its own long-range strikes
The absence of American Tomahawk missiles has not halted the development of Ukraine’s long-range capabilities.
In recent months, Ukraine has significantly expanded the geographical scope of its strikes against Russian oil, military and logistics infrastructure. Ukrainian drones are now reaching targets several thousand kilometres from the border.
At the same time, US policy on strikes within Russia has also been gradually changing. In September 2025, Trump’s special representative, Keith Kellogg, publicly stated that there should be no off-limits military targets in Russia for Ukraine, provided Kyiv had the capability to strike them.
Trump’s latest statement goes even further: the US President is effectively linking Ukraine’s ability to deliver a more symmetrical response to Russia, with the potential to force the Kremlin to agree to peace.
