By Erin Banco
(Reuters) – The Trump administration plans to push European allies to buy more American weapons for Ukraine ahead of potential peace talks with Moscow, said two people with knowledge of the matter, a move that could improve Kyiv’s negotiating position.
The plan, if formalized, will offer some reassurance to Ukrainian leaders who have worried that President Donald Trump might block further aid to the country, whose military has been slowly losing territory under fierce Russian assault in the east.
European countries previously had purchased American weapons for Ukraine during the Biden administration.
U.S. officials, including Trump’s Ukrainian envoy, retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, will discuss the possible weapons purchases with European allies this week during the Munich Security Conference, the sources said.
It is one of several ideas the administration is discussing to potentially continue U.S. weapons shipments to Kyiv without expending significant U.S. capital, they added.
In an interview on Monday with Reuters, Kellogg declined to confirm the plan but said, “The U.S. always likes selling weapons made in America because it strengthens our economy.
“There are a lot of options out there. Everything is in play right now,” Kellogg said, adding that the shipments previously approved by former President Joe Biden still were flowing into Ukraine.
“There’s not necessarily any need in the next 24 hours to it any different,” he said.
U.S. officials have said in recent days that the Trump administration wants to recoup the billions Washington has spent on the war in Ukraine and that Europe needs to do more to help.
“I think an underlying principle here is that the Europeans have to own this conflict going forward,” U.S. national security adviser Mike Waltz said in an interview with NBC News on Sunday.
The Ukrainian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
It’s unclear if the U.S. plans to ask European countries to purchase American arms through commercial contracts or directly from the American stockpile. Some commercial contracts can take years to complete.
The Trump administration has for weeks debated whether and how to continue arming Ukraine.
Trump vowed during his presidential campaign to cut off all aid to Ukraine. But some of his advisers have argued behind the scenes that Washington should continue to support Kyiv militarily, especially if the peace talks are delayed until later this year.
Biden approved more than $65 billion in security assistance to Ukraine during his time in office, including billions in the final months of his administration.
But officials in Kyiv, including President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, have said Ukraine needs more security guarantees before entering into talks with Moscow.
The Trump White House would likely face significant pushback from some Republicans if it moves forward with asking for additional funding from Congress.
Administration officials view an arms purchase deal with Europe as a potential workaround, allowing Washington to support Kyiv without spending U.S. taxpayer dollars. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said last month that Europe would pay for U.S. arms for Ukraine.
“THE BRINK OF A BREAKUP”
Washington and Moscow have offered dueling narratives on the prospects for peace talks, fueling speculation about the extent to which the Trump administration will be able to convince both Ukraine and Russia to come to the negotiating table in the coming months.
Trump said on Sunday that he has been in contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin and he believed the United States was making progress in its talks to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Following Trump’s comments, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told reporters that relations with Washington were “balancing on the brink of a breakup,” saying Ukraine needed to drop its bid for NATO membership and withdraw from regions occupied by Russian forces.
The two government sources said the White House is likely months away from formalizing a peace plan to end the fighting and that it needed to work through several other issues before brokering talks.
Several U.S. officials are in Europe this week to help set the stage for eventual peace talks between Ukraine and Russia.
Kellogg plans to discuss with European leaders at the Munich Security Conference surging aid to Kyiv.
“I wouldn’t say we’re at the beginning of the [peace planning process] because we’ve been thinking through it,” Kellogg said, adding that U.S. officials this week will meet with their European counterparts to “deliver our expectations to the allies.”
“More importantly, we want to hear from them,” he said.
U.S. officials also hope to formalize a mineral deal with Ukraine that would allow America access to the country’s rich reserves in exchange for continued aid.
The details of such a deal have not been made public. Development of Ukraine’s reserves would likely take years and the U.S. would not immediately reap profits from sales. But the Trump administration views the deal as a critical component of its Ukraine policy.
(Reporting by Erin Banco; Additional reporting by Jonathan Landay; Editing by Don Durfee and Leslie Adler)
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