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The White House described President Donald Trump’s meetings with Zelensky and Netanyahu as positive and productive. Both leaders attended the funeral of Senator Lindsey Graham, a vocal supporter of aid to Ukraine and Israel who died earlier in July. A Center for Strategic and International Studies report from July 2026 placed Russian military losses at some 1.4 million killed, wounded or missing since the 2022 invasion.
Zelensky pressed the US president to deliver on a pledge made at the recent Nato summit for licenses to produce Patriot missiles domestically. Zelensky told Fox News, “He accepted that he will give us licences,” and added that he then met with representatives from major American military firms to discuss co-production. One Patriot battery can track eight targets while detecting over 100 others and intercept ballistic missiles with ranges up to 1,000 kilometres, though each interceptor missile costs between $3 million and $5 million, according to defence analyses.
The Ukrainian leader also held discussions with a bipartisan group of lawmakers shortly before the Senate approved sanctions on purchasers of Russian oil and gas. Zelensky described the vote as a big signal to Europe and strong support for Ukraine’s people. United Nations figures show more than 16,000 civilians killed in the conflict with another 48,000 injured through the first half of 2026, while 10.8 million people across the country require humanitarian assistance.
Netanyahu’s session with Trump focused on the conflict involving Iran, where ties between the two allies have grown strained over Israeli operations in Lebanon and ceasefire compliance. The Israeli prime minister told Israeli media the two reached an understanding on a shared goal to ensure Iran does not obtain nuclear weapons and called it one of the best conversations he has had with the US president. A photograph released on Netanyahu’s social media account depicted the leaders smiling together in the Oval Office.
US military statements confirmed that Iranian forces attempted a surprise missile attack on American positions in the Middle East following the meetings, though all projectiles were intercepted. American and Saudi troops struck Iranian-backed proxies in eastern Iraq accused of launching drones against Saudi energy facilities. Russia occupies roughly 20 percent of Ukrainian territory as the conflict enters its fifth year, according to assessments from the Council on Foreign Relations.
Trump wrote on Truth Social that the meeting with Zelensky went very well and described his discussion with Netanyahu in similar terms. Ukrainian forces continue to face intense Russian assaults, with recent strikes killing dozens in Kyiv and other cities throughout July. The sanctions legislation, which scales back earlier proposals to tariffs of up to 100 percent on the top buyers of Russian fossil fuels, builds on efforts to curb Moscow’s war funding.
