Washington, 17 October 2025 (dpa/MIA) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is due to meet US President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday.

Zelensky hopes to secure approval from the United States for the sale of US long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles, which could allow Ukraine to take a more offensive role in repelling the Russian invasion.

Zelensky also hopes that the momentum gained after Trump's ceasefire deal between the Palestinian militant organization Hamas and Israel in the Gaza war could give fresh impetus to negotiations to end the Russian war in Ukraine.

"We expect that the momentum of curbing terror and war that succeeded in the Middle East will help to end Russia's war against Ukraine," Zelensky posted on X.

"[Russian President Vladimir] Putin is certainly no braver than Hamas or any other terrorist. The language of strength and justice will inevitably work against Russia as well.

"We can already see that Moscow is rushing to resume dialogue as soon as it hears about Tomahawks."

Whether Zelensky can secure Tomahawks for Ukraine remains unclear.

The day before their meeting, Trump spoke with Putin by phone and said he wants to meet the Russian president in Budapest "probably over the next two weeks."

It is unclear whether Ukraine could play any role in a summit.

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Photo: EPA