Russia struck a Ukrainian hospital on Monday evening in its ongoing intensive air campaign, just hours after President Donald Trump said he would “talk” to Moscow about giving Tomahawk missiles to Kiev, in a thinly veiled threat.
Russia, which has repeatedly said it does not target civilians, has routinely hit hospitals and injured six patients in the Kharkiv region during the more than three-and-a-half-year war after hitting a facility housing more than 100 patients with precision-guided KAB bombs, local news channel the Kyiv Independent reported.
Firefighters extinguish a fire after a Russian airstrike on October 13, 2025 in Kharkiv, Ukraine. (Mykyta Kuznetsov/Gwara Media/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
The Kremlin warns that it could “end badly for everyone” if the US supplies long-range missiles to Ukraine
“They really need patriots. They would like to have tomahawks – that’s a step up,” Trump said on Sunday after a conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“They would like to have Tomahawks. We have talked about that and so we will see. I don’t know, maybe, to be honest, I should talk to Russia about Tomahawks,” he added, referring to the highly accurate long-range cruise missile. “Do they want the Tomahawks to go their way? I don’t think so.’
Zelenskyy and Trump will meet in Washington on Friday to discuss Ukraine’s air defenses and increase pressure on Putin, as Europe and the US try to counter his increasingly aggressive stance.
“The main topics of the visit are air defense and our long-range capabilities to pressure Russia for the sake of peace,” Zelenskyy said Monday, although he noted he will also meet with defense and energy officials, and may attend some meetings with lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
Ukraine has long sought more air defense as Russia has relied heavily on drone and missile strikes since the war to bomb civilian targets, including residential buildings, schools, maternity hospitals and children’s hospitals.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (L) meets with US President Donald Trump (R) in Washington DC, United States on August 19, 2025. (Ukrainian Presidency / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)
ZELENSKYY PRAISES ‘PRODUCTIVE’ TALKS WITH TRUMP ON STRENGTHENING UKRAINIAN AIR DEFENSE AND LONG-RANGE CAPABILITIES
“As the war in the Middle East comes to an end, it is important not to lose momentum in spreading peace. The war in Europe can also be brought to an end, and for this the leadership of both the United States and other partners is of paramount importance,” Zelenskyy said.
Trump also suggested on Monday that a ceasefire has now been reached between Israel and Hamas – although this has not yet been fully realized as it cannot move on to the second phase of the deal until all the deceased hostages have returned from the Gaza Strip – that he wanted to turn his attention to ending the war in Ukraine.
Trump suggested that if Russia is unwilling to “settle” the war, the US would send Ukraine the Tomahawk missiles it has long sought. Although it remains unclear what will prove to Trump whether Putin is interested in ending his military ambitions in Ukraine, as Putin has continued to attack civilian targets despite numerous meetings between not only him and Trump, but also with other White House officials, since Trump reassumed office.
President Donald Trump greets Russian President Vladimir Putin, Friday, August 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/The Associated Press)
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Security experts have been warning for months that Putin is not interested in ending his war in Ukraine and will continue to pose a threat to other European countries.
“I really think President Putin would look great if he could get this sorted out,” Trump said. “And I think he’s going to sort it out. Look, we’ll see. And if he doesn’t, it won’t be good for him.’
