Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky claims he is working on a “mega-deal” that would allow his country to swap its cutting-edge drones for weaponry from the United States.
Zelensky revealed the negotiations with the White House in an interview published Thursday, explaining that the U.S. would reap the benefits of Ukrainian advances in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) while his own country would receive vital armaments.
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“The people of America need this technology, and you need to have it in your arsenal,” Zelensky said. “I think this is really a mega deal, a win-win, as they say.”
Ukraine has pushed the limits of drone technology in its three-year defensive war against invading Russian forces.
UAVs operated by the Ukrainian military have struck targets more than 800 miles deep into Russian territory and strategists have devised clandestine strategies to smuggle drones into otherwise untouchable areas.
“We will be ready to share this experience with America and other European partners,” Zelensky told the New York Post.
President Donald Trump gave Russia an ultimatum this week, demanding that they establish a ceasefire within the next 50 days or face a slew of secondary tariffs intended to isolate them further economically.
The Kremlin has shrugged off the deadline, claiming it’s unbothered by the threat.
“Fifty days – it used to be 24 hours; it used to be 100 days; we’ve been through all of this,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday.
“Fifty days, for us, is just — every day is scary,” Zelensky said in the Thursday interview.
“Putin has wasted President Trump’s time,” he said. “I would very much like to see the United States, the Congress, and the president put some pressure on this situation with sanctions and so the sooner, the faster it can be done, the better.”
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The Ukrainian leader is optimistic about the possibility that the deadline could be shortened or abandoned based on Trump’s mercurial negotiating style.
“A lot of opinions change very rapidly — might not be 50 days, might be much sooner than 50 days,” Zelensky said.
The mounting death toll on both sides of the yearslong battle is impossible to ignore.
The Kremlin announced Thursday that Russia returned the bodies of 1,000 soldiers killed in action into the custody of Ukrainian authorities.
Ukraine acknowledged the transfer of the bodies and Russian state media claims a further 2,000 are expected to be turned over to Ukraine in the future.
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Zelensky appointed former Economic Minister Yulia Svyrydenko as his new prime minister on Thursday as part of a “transformation of the executive branch.”
Svyrydenko rose to international prominence after spearheading negotiations for the U.S.-Ukraine minerals deal signed in April.
She is replacing Denys Shmyhal, the nation’s longest-serving prime minister, who has held the office since before the latest Russian invasion began. Shmyhal is set to become Ukraine’s next defense minister.