NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte with Donald Trump in the White House, Washington D.C., July 14, 2025

EA on Pat Kenny Show: Trump-Ukraine, The Threat of “Alligator Alcatraz”, and MAGA Fury Over Epstein Files

Monday’s Coverage: Trump — I’ll Support Sale of Patriot Missiles to Kyiv

Map: Institute for the Study of War

UPDATE 1634 GMT:

Slovakia has blocked the European Union’s passage of the 18th sanctions package on Russia over the invasion of Ukraine.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters after the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels:

I’m really sad that we didn’t reach this agreement today. I must say that we were really close to reassuring Slovakia. The commission has delivered what they asked for.

Now, the ball is in Slovakia’s court, and we must get this deal done. It has been already two months.

Sanctions are necessary to starve Russia of the means to wage this war, and the European Union will keep rising the cost, so stopping its aggression becomes the only path forward to Moscow.

Slovakia, historically reliance on Russian oil and gas, is objecting to the EU’s plan to cut off Russian supplies by 2028. The EU had tried to give Slovakia reassurances about provision in emergency situations; however, Slovakian leader Robert Fico, sympathetic to Vladimir Putin, signalled that the accommodations were not sufficient.

Kallas responded implicitly to Fico, “If you go into negotiations or worries you have, [and] your sensitivities are addressed, then it’s…important that you don’t present any anything on top of it.”

She said technical talks will continue on Wednesday, but noted it is difficult to navigate the process with the support of all 27 member states needed.

UPDATE 1250 GMT:

Ukraine Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal has submitted his resignation, a day after President Volodymyr Zelensky asked Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, to lead the government.

Thank you to our defenders who are holding the front and protecting Ukraine!

Thank you to the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky for the trust!

Thank you to the entire team for their tireless work for our country!

Glory to Ukraine!

UPDATE 1026 GMT:

“People briefed on the discussions” says Donald Trump encouraged Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky to pursue airstrikes inside Russia.

In the call on July 4, Trump told Zelensky he wanted Russians to “feel the pain”. He asked, if Ukraine was given long-range weapons by the US, “Can you hit Moscow?…Can you hit St Petersburg too?”

Zelensky replied, “Absolutely. We can if you give us the weapons.”

UPDATE 1016 GMT:

The Kremlin is setting aside its initial response, dismissing any significance in Donald Trump’s shift of position.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said Russia is ready to negotiate but does not want to bow to any ultimata.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Trump’s statements were “serious and required analysis”. Vladimir Putin would comment on the US proposals if he deemed it necessary.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said he hoped the changing US approach and more sanctions from the European Union will force Putin “to face the facts: he has gone too far and he is now at an impasse”.

Having met leading US senators in Rome last week, he expressed hope for more alignment between the US and the EU. He urged the latter to adopt its 18th sanctions package today to maintain momentum to “apply very strong pressure on Vladimir Putin”.

UPDATE 0903 GMT:

A “senior White House official” says Donald Trump’s shift of position is not a sign of support for Ukraine’s resistance against the Russian invasion:

The President’s view is Russia is going to win, it’s a matter of how long it takes.

Russia has the bigger economy, has the bigger military, has more than enough bodies to throw into the meat grinder, and just doesn’t care. And although they are making slow progress, they are still making progress.

The President just wants to stop the killing.

In contrast, “a source familiar with the plan” said the US will sell around $10 billion in weapons to NATO allies in just the first wave of supplies. They will include missiles and artillery shells as well as air defense systems.

UPDATE 0710 GMT:

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas says Donald Trump should have given Vladimir Putin a shorter deadline to begin talks over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Trump said on Monday that he would impose 100% tariffs on Russia and its main trading partners if Putin does not agree to negotiations within 50 days.

Kallas reacted:

On the one hand, it is very positive that President Trump is taking on a strong stance on Russia. On the other hand, 50 days is a very long time if we see that they are killing innocent civilians.

However, Kallas praised the overall shift in Trump’s psoition: “It’s clear that we all need to put more pressure so they will also want peace. And it’s good the Americans are making the steps, and I hope they are giving military aid like Europeans are giving.”

Russian dissident and former political prisoner Vladimir Kara-Murza echoed Kallas’s concern over the 50-day window given by Trump to Putin:

UPDATE 0647 GMT:

At least five civilians have been killed and at least 53 injured, including four children, by Russian attacks across Ukraine over the past day.

In the Kherson region in southern Ukraine, two civilians were killed and 18 wounded. Two high-rise buildings, 12 houses, an agricultural company, and other buildings were damaged.

In the Donetsk region in the east, one civilian was murdered and 10 injured. In neighboring Kharkiv, one person was slain and nine wounded, including two children.

In the Sumy region in the northeast, 12 people were wounded, including a 14-year-old girl. The Russians targeted a university in Sumy city, injuring five staff members and a 19-year-old student. A medical facility, cars, and non-residential buildings were damaged.

Casualties were also reported in the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and international partners are hailing Donald Trump’s decision to provide military aid for the Ukrainian resistance of Russia’s 40 1/2-month invasion.

Frustrated by Vladimir Putin’s refusal of a ceasefire and escalating attacks on Ukraine’s civilians, Trump confirmed on Monday that he will sell Patriot air defense systems to NATO members. They will transfer the missiles to Kyiv.

Alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the White House, Trump also threatened to impose 100% tariffs on Moscow if Putin did not halt his invasion within 50 days.

He also indicated that the US might supply Ukraine with long-range missiles that can strike inside Russia.

Rutte assured that NATO allies including Germany, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, and Canada were ready to assist: “They all want to be part of this. And this is only the first wave. There will be more.”

Zelensky: “Honest and Effective Steps Toward Peace”

Zelensky met Trump’s envoy Keith Kellogg in Kyiv to discuss the arrangements. He summarized in his nightly address to the nation:

Ukraine is absolutely ready for all honest and effective steps toward peace – lasting peace – and real security. It is Russia that isn’t ready. It is Russia that must be forced.

Zelensky also spoke with Rutte and posted about Trump: “We agreed to catch up more often by phone and coordinate our steps in the future as well. Thank you, Mr. President! Thank you, America!”

The Kremlin played down the developments. Former President Dmitry Medvedev, the Deputy Secretary of the State Security Council, posted:

Konstantin Kosachev, a senior legislator, posted that Trump’s statements were “hot air”:

A lot can change in 50 days – on the battlefield and in the mindset of those in power, both in the US and in NATO.

Others in Moscow were not so sure. “A new reality on Ukraine began today with Trump’s statement,” said pro-Kremlin commentator Sergey Markov. “As of today, he’s pressuring only Russia and supporting Ukraine.”

Germany Ready to Send 2 Patriots

After meeting US counterpart Pete Hegseth in Washington, Germany’s Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Berlin and Washington will decide on the despatch to Kyiv of two Patriot systems within days or weeks.

Pistorius said working-level talks will complete the details, including the precise number of launchers and missiles.

The first Patriot unit could arrive in Ukraine within months, he explained.

Pistorius declined to comment on whether discussions extended to offensive weapons for Kyiv.

Silver Lining for Putin: US Senate Will Delay Consideration of Sanctions

There was a paradoxical consolation for the Kremlin: because of Trump’s tariffs threat, the US Senate will delay consideration of a bill for “sledgehammer” sanctions against Moscow and countries supporting its invasion.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters:

It sounds like right now the President is going to attempt to do some of this on his own. If at some point the President concludes that it makes sense and adds value and leverage that he needs in those negotiations to move the bill, then we’ll do it. We’ll be ready to go.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham and Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, the co-authors of the bill, met with Zelensky in Rome last week. Graham indicated that the legislation, co-sponsored by 85 of 100 of senators, would soon be discussed by the chamber.