President Donald Trump said Tuesday the United States could permit Ukraine to produce Patriot air-defense missiles on its own soil, a significant potential shift in US weapons policy announced after a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey.
Trump told reporters the meeting had produced “a lot of progress” toward ending the war in Ukraine, without specifying terms, a timeline, or whether Kyiv had accepted any conditions.
The Patriot remark is the sharpest concrete policy signal to emerge from the Ankara gathering so far. Patriot systems have been central to Ukraine’s air defense since Russia began targeting civilian infrastructure; domestic Ukrainian production would reduce dependence on US and allied supply chains.
Trump also used the summit to repeat his demand that the United States take over Greenland, framing the territory as a national security priority. The Danish government has rejected the proposal. Greenland’s own government has said the island’s future is for its people to decide.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte is chairing the Ankara sessions. Alliance members are expected to discuss defense spending targets and military aid to Ukraine through the remainder of the summit, with further bilateral meetings scheduled Wednesday.