President Donald Trump is scheduled to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House on Friday. The leaders plan to discuss significant defensive measures and strategies to effectively counter Russia’s ongoing conflict.

This announcement comes shortly after Trump engaged in a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, adding an interesting dimension to the upcoming meeting.

President Zelenskyy has been vocal about his primary objective: securing advanced defenses for Ukraine in the face of relentless Russian air assaults on civilian areas, including urban centers, energy facilities, and hospitals. One of his key requests is the acquisition of American Tomahawk missiles.

On August 19, 2025, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Donald Trump met in Washington D.C. (Image credit: Ukrainian Presidency / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The Tomahawk missile, known for its high precision and long-range capabilities, could potentially allow Ukraine to strike targets deep within Russia, including key military sites and the oil industry that significantly finances President Putin’s military endeavors.

But one security expert warned that “no one weapon system is going to be a wonder weapon or a game changer, per se,” John Hardie, deputy director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ (FDD) Russia Program told Fox News Digital. 

Hardie said that countering Russia’s war must be done through a series of tactics which includes increased missile capability for Ukraine, but also by targeting Russia’s war chest by undermining its economy through sanctions, hitting its oil industry and crippling its defense complex.

Thirdly, Ukraine must be better equipped in its war effort on the front lines.

“Putin still seems to believe, or chooses to believe, that he can grind down Ukrainian forces in this war of attrition, and that eventually that will give him a pathway to accomplishing some of his goals,” Hardie said. “He’s going to have to be disabused of that.

“The goal should be to exhaust the Russian military’s offensive potential,” he added. 

Hardie also pointed out that while big ticket items like Tomahawks would be useful for Ukraine given its long-range and heavy payload capabilities, there are items that Kyiv could more efficiently employ for its daily needs. 

Apartment buildings are damaged by a Russian military strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in the frontline town of Kostiantynivka in Donetsk region, Ukraine Oct. 13, 2025.  (Oleg Petrasiuk/Press Service of the 24th King Danylo Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS )

“We kind of fixate on that one system, but there are a broad range of things that the United States can do to enhance Ukrainian long-range precision strike capabilities,” he said.

Systems like the Extended-Range Attack Munition (ERAM) missiles, which are a more affordable long-range cruise missile specifically designed by the U.S. for Ukraine, have been slated to arrive beginning in October.

Hardie also pointed to defensive systems which are useful and needed to better protect against Russia’s constant missile and drone attacks, like Patriot battery systems. 

Following his call with Putin on Thursday, Trump said “great progress” was made, but he did not provide any specifics on how progress was achieved, though the pair agreed to once again meet in person, this time in Hungary.

President Donald Trump greets Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, Friday, Aug. 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. On Friday, Putin praised Trump’s peacemaking efforts despite him not winning the Nobel Peace Prize.  (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/The Associated Press)

Though Trump said the pair discussed U.S.-Russia trade, he did not say whether U.S. aid to Ukraine was discussed, which appeared to be the impetus for the call earlier this week when he told reporters he “might have to speak” with Putin regarding whether he wanted U.S. Tomahawks near his borders, in what appeared to be an implied threat. 

But neither Tomahawks nor defensive aid were mentioned in the president’s account of the talks. 

Though, according to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, the issue was discussed and opposed by Putin. 

“Vladimir Putin reiterated his thesis that Tomahawks won’t change the situation on the battlefield, but they will cause significant damage to relations between our countries. Not to mention the prospects for a peaceful settlement,” he told reporters following the call, according to Reuters.