WASHINGTON — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is scheduled to visit the White House on Friday to confer with President Donald Trump. The discussion will focus on the potential provision of long-range Tomahawk missiles and the ongoing conflict with Russia, as Ukraine ramps up its call for increased U.S. military support.

This meeting comes on the heels of a phone conversation between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, during which Russia cautioned that supplying Kyiv with long-range Tomahawks could significantly heighten tensions. The Kremlin described the potential move as introducing a “qualitatively new stage of escalation,” given the missiles’ capability to strike targets deep within Russia.

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While Trump has yet to make any formal announcement regarding these weapons, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has hinted at an impending boost in “firepower” for Ukraine, ahead of a NATO defense ministers’ gathering in Brussels. The inclusion of Tomahawks in this potential aid package remains uncertain.

Zelenskyy’s visit to Washington follows a series of severe attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, highlighting the country’s urgent need for enhanced air defenses and long-range weaponry to exert pressure on Russia to end the hostilities.

The White House meeting on Friday caps a week of back-and-forth signaling from both leaders. Trump has publicly floated the possibility of providing Tomahawks, while Zelenskyy has framed the discussion as part of a broader effort to secure the weapons needed to deter Russia and defend critical infrastructure.

Zelenskyy has also struck an optimistic tone, suggesting that diplomatic breakthroughs elsewhere, as Trump has secured a fragile ceasefire in Gaza, could help create momentum for ending the war with Russia.

Trump appeared to acknowledge as much in his address to the Israeli parliament on Monday, saying, “Let’s focus on Russia first.”

During his campaign for president last year, Trump promised to solve the war within 24 hours, but he has since conceded it is a more difficult task than he anticipated and turned his attention to other conflicts after months of negotiations with Moscow yielded little progress.

Returning from the Middle East on Monday, Trump said he was considering approving the Tomahawk missiles, saying they would offer “a new step of aggression” in the war against Russia. He also said he might tell Russia, “If this war is not going to get settled, I’m going to send [Ukraine] Tomahawks.”

“We may not, but we may do it. I think it’s appropriate to bring up,” Trump said aboard Air Force One. “I want to see the war settled.”

He said he discussed the possibility with Zelenskyy during a call last weekend. “We’ll see,” Trump said.

Trump also said this week that he plans to meet with Putin in Budapest in the coming weeks after making “great progress” in their call on Thursday. It would be Trump’s second meeting with Putin in recent months as he seeks to bring the war to a close.

Trump said he had asked Putin in a “lighthearted” way if he would mind if he sent Tomahawks and that Putin opposed the move. “What do you think he’s going to say, ‘Please sell Tomahawks?’” Trump joked to reporters.