Ukraine’s need for additional air defense systems to protect the country from incoming Russian drones and missiles is exacerbated by the U.S.’s decision to halt some military aid shipments to them.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and President Donald Trump spoke on Friday morning, just days after news emerged that the Department of Defense had paused shipments of U.S. military aid to Ukraine amid concerns about depleted U.S. stockpiles.

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“President Trump is very well informed, and I thank him for his attention to Ukraine,” Zelensky said on social media after the call. “We spoke about opportunities in air defense and agreed that we will work together to strengthen protection of our skies.”

This call occurred hours after one of Russia’s largest aerial attacks against Ukraine, which featured more than 500 drones and missiles. Russian forces targeted Kyiv and the Dnipro, Sumy, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, and Kyiv regions.

Zelensky added that Ukraine’s military was able to shoot down 270 incoming projectiles, and electronic warfare jammed 208 drones.

A top Zelensky adviser, Andriy Yermak, told the Washington Examiner that the conversation was “really very good” and that Zelensky was “very happy that the presidents [are] now talking, understand each other, feel each other, and are on the same page.”

The comments from both Zelensky and Yermak show the delicate thread they are trying to weave with the Trump administration.

Criticizing the administration’s decision to reduce its support risks further degrading the relationship and could result in additional cuts reminiscent of Zelensky and Trump’s public feud in the Oval Office, which prompted the Trump administration to suspend intelligence sharing with Kyiv briefly.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said this week that the department’s decision is part of a broader “capability review” to “ensure U.S. military aid aligns with our defense priorities.” He accused the Biden administration of “giving away weapons and munitions without really thinking about how many we have.”

Trump has sought to end the Russia-Ukraine war, but the negotiations have yielded little progress to date. Zelensky agreed to many of the administration’s requests in the talks, while Russian President Vladimir Putin maintained his maximalist demands that his military has been unable to accomplish on the battlefield.

Trump expressed his frustration with Putin on Friday after the two of them spoke.

UKRAINE’S NIGHTMARE COMES TRUE WITH PENTAGON MOVE TO HALT SOME AID THANKS TO STOCKPILES

“I’m very disappointed with the conversation I had today with President Putin because I don’t think he’s there,” Trump told reporters early Friday morning. “I don’t think he’s looking to stop [the fighting], and that’s too bad.”

The administration has declined to impose any direct consequences for Moscow’s negotiating stances. It has pressured Kyiv to get Zelensky to cave on certain aspects of the diplomatic efforts.