U.S. Army Patriot air defense systems are deployed to Poland in September 2024. The U.S. will send equipment including Patriot systems to NATO and the alliance will distribute the weapons to Ukraine, President Donald Trump said July 10, 2025. (Robert Wormley/U.S. Army)
The United States will supply weapons to Ukraine with NATO footing the bill, President Donald Trump announced on the heels of discussions with the leader of the 32-nation defense bloc.
“We’re sending weapons to NATO, and NATO is paying for those weapons,” Trump said, adding that the U.S. will be reimbursed 100%.
His comments in an interview Thursday with NBC News came after a conversation earlier in the day with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who has called on allies to bolster support for Ukraine.
More air defense systems are a top priority for the Ukrainians, who have been facing an onslaught of Russian drone and missile strikes in recent weeks. The U.S.-made Patriot missile defense system is in especially high demand.
“We’re going to be sending Patriots to NATO, and then NATO will distribute that,” Trump said in the interview.
Trump’s assertions about coordinating arms deliveries with NATO follow a brief Defense Department pause in allowing U.S. weapons shipments to Ukraine.
Last week, the Pentagon halted deliveries in connection with a global review to assess weapons stockpile levels. But on Monday, the Defense Department said Trump had directed it to send additional weapons to Ukraine.
In recent days, Trump has voiced frustrations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has stepped up his attacks on Ukraine despite White House calls for a peace deal.
“He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless,” Trump said of Putin on Tuesday.
While Trump has been critical of the amount of U.S. funding directed to Ukraine, he’s also praised Ukrainian troops.
“I will say this, the Ukrainians, whether you think it’s unfair that we gave all that money or not, they were very brave because somebody had to operate that stuff,” Trump said. “And a lot of people I know wouldn’t be operating it.”
In his NBC interview, Trump said he’s “disappointed in Russia” and expects to make a “major statement” about the country on Monday.
Although he didn’t go into further detail on the statement, his comments come as Senate Republicans consider a new round of sanctions on Russia.
