Trump Strikes Deal With NATO To Send Weapons To Ukraine On Europe’s Dime

President Donald Trump announced on Monday that his administration would sell the “best equipment” and “best missiles” to NATO for Ukraine’s defense and threatened to impose 100% “secondary tariffs” on Russia as it continues to wage war on Ukraine.

During a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House, Trump said, “We’ve made a deal today where we’re going to be sending them weapons and they’re going to be paying for them.”

“The United States will not be having any payment made,” he added. “We’re not buying it, but we will manufacture it, and they’re going to be paying for it.”

“We have an ocean separating us,” the president continued. “We make the best stuff, but we can’t keep doing this — and Biden should’ve done this years ago.”

.@POTUS: "We make the best equipment, the best missiles… the European nations know that… We've made a deal today where we're going to be sending them weapons and they're going to be paying for them. The United States will NOT be having any payment made." pic.twitter.com/TG2URSC3Ya

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) July 14, 2025

Rutte agreed that “it’s totally logical” for Trump to want European countries to pay for Ukraine’s defense.

“This is again Europeans stepping up,” Rutte said. “I’ve been in contact with many countries. I can tell you at this moment Germany, massively, but also Finland and Denmark and Sweden and Norway, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands, Canada — they all want to be part of this, and this is only the first wave. There will be more,” Rutte added.

.@SecGenNATO: "You want Ukraine [to have] what it needs … but you want the Europeans to pay for it — which is totally logical." pic.twitter.com/k2tSUfCGJ4

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) July 14, 2025

The 100% tariffs on Russia would go into effect if Russian President Vladimir Putin does not reach a peace agreement with Ukraine within 50 days, according to Trump. The “secondary tariffs” would penalize countries that do business with Russia, such as those purchasing Russian oil and gas. Trump’s 100% tariff rate on Russia is lower than what some GOP lawmakers are pushing for. A bill introduced by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) proposes 500% tariffs on nations that deal with Russia.

“We are very, very unhappy with [Russia], and we’re going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don’t have a deal in 50 days,” Trump said. He added that his talks with Putin have become meaningless.

“I speak to him a lot about getting this thing done, and I always hang up and say, ‘Well, that was a nice phone call,'” Trump said. “And then missiles launched into Kyiv or some other city, and I said, ‘strange.'”

.@POTUS: "We are very, very unhappy with [Russia], and we're going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don't have a deal in 50 days." pic.twitter.com/hQSTIng1zj

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) July 14, 2025

Last week, Russia launched two major drone and missile attacks on Ukraine after Trump publicly expressed disappointment with Putin. The strikes included a barrage on Kyiv that killed at least two people and wounded 16 more.

Trump praised Ukraine and other European nations for their “spirit” during the war, a major change in tune from just a few months ago, when the president blasted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for requesting more U.S. assistance in the fight against Russia.

“I think this is a chance at getting peace,” Trump said of the new deal with NATO and Ukraine. “Europe has a lot of spirit for this war. When I first got involved, I really didn’t think they did, but they do … they really think it’s a very, very important thing to do or they wouldn’t be doing it.”