Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that he had a “very important and productive” phone call with President Donald Trump.

The two leaders discussed how Ukrainian air defenses might be strengthened, possible joint weapons production between the U.S. and Ukraine, and broader U.S-led efforts to end the war with Russia, according to a statement by Zelenskyy.

“I had a very important and fruitful conversation with @POTUS,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “I congratulated President Trump and the entire American people on the US Independence Day. We – in Ukraine – are grateful for all the support provided. It helps us protect lives, safeguard our freedom and independence. We have achieved a lot together with America and we support all efforts to stop the killings and restore just, lasting, and dignified peace. A noble agreement for peace is needed.” 

Zelenskyy said he and Trump “discussed the current situation, including Russian airstrikes and the broader frontline developments.”

The U.S. has paused some shipments of military aid to Ukraine, including crucial air defense missiles, out of concern for U.S. stockpiles following the Israel-Iran conflict. Ukraine’s main European backers are considering how they can help pick up the slack. Zelenskyy says plans are afoot to build up Ukraine’s domestic arms industry, but scaling up will take time.

Trump said he had also discussed Ukraine’s request for Patriot missiles with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, but they have not yet made a decision. 

“No, we did talk about it, though, and he feels, you know, they have to be protected. He’s a strong guy, and smart, very smart man,” Trump said of Merz.

Trump had said early Friday that he was “very disappointed” by his phone call with Putin, adding: “I don’t think he’s looking to stop, and that’s too bad.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting on the development of “new regions” annexed from Ukraine, at the Kremlin, on June 30, 2025, in Moscow.  (Contributor/Getty Images)

Putin’s aide, Yuri Ushakov, released a summary of what he said was a nearly hour-long conversation between Trump and Russia’s leader. It said Putin told Trump that Russia would “not back down from its goals” regarding the Ukraine war.

“Naturally, the issues surrounding Ukraine were also discussed. Donald Trump has once again raised the issue of ending the hostilities as soon as possible. In turn, Vladimir Putin noted that we still continued the search for a political, negotiated solution to the conflict,” Moscow’s readout said. “He also noted Russia was willing to pursue negotiations. Additionally, the President of Russia said that Russia would strive to achieve its goals, namely the elimination of the well-known root causes that led to the current state of affairs, the bitter confrontation that we are seeing now. Russia will not back down from these goals.”

Russia has been stepping up its long-range attacks on Ukraine. Waves of drones and missiles targeted Kyiv overnight Thursday into Friday in the largest aerial assault since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began. 

Ukraine said it struck a Russian air base on Saturday, while Russia’s stepped-up bombing campaign has dashed hopes for a breakthrough in efforts to end the more than three-year-old war.

Ukraine’s military General Staff said that Ukrainian forces had struck the Borisoglebsk air base in Russia’s Voronezh region, describing it as the home base of Russia’s Su-34, Su-35S and Su-30SM fighter jets.

Fox News’ Sarah Tobianski, Lucas Tomlinson and the Associated Press contributed to this report.