US president turns down $50 billion arms deal with Ukraine

US President Donald Trump has rejected a proposed $50 billion arms deal with Ukraine.

Trump turned down the deal, stating he does not want to provide assistance to Kyiv, even if it meant receiving $50 billion from EU funds in exchange, Caliber.Az reports via German media. 

The proposed deal, which was designed to address Ukraine's urgent need for new air defence systems, was not accepted by the president. While Ukraine is facing a critical need for updated defence systems, Trump appears to be more focused on diplomatic negotiations aimed at resolving the ongoing conflict rather than profiting from Ukraine's defence needs. 

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Kyiv had not asked Washington to provide additional weapons packages for free but was ready to purchase them, even at $30 billion or $50 billion. The Ukrainian leader mentioned that he had called US President Donald Trump to request the sale of at least 10 Patriot air defence systems. Zelenskyy emphasised that Ukraine has many different formats and tools for purchasing American weapons. On April 6, Zelenskyy called on allies to transfer all the Patriot systems they have stored to Ukraine, criticising them for not using these air defence systems.

By Naila Huseynova