Trump says weapons already sent to Ukraine; no rush on Iran talks

U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed on Tuesday that weapons are already being shipped to Ukraine amid the ongoing conflict. He also said there is no rush to engage in talks with Iran over its nuclear programme.

Speaking to reporters after arriving at Joint Base Andrews, Trump said he has not spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin since the threat of sanctions against Russia were announced on Monday. He has criticized Putin for not living up to claims of wanting peace.

When asked about the Patriot Missiles for Ukraine, Trump said “They're already being shipped.”

He added “They're coming in from Germany and then replaced by Germany. And in all cases, the United States gets paid back in full. So what's happening, as you know, is the European Union, if you look, mostly European Union stuff, but let's put it in the form of NATO, it's very similar, but NATO's going to pay us back for everything. In some cases, we're going to be paid back by countries of the European Union directly. We're always getting our money back in full."

Meanwhile, he also said that Tehran was hoping to engage in discussions with the United States.

"They would like to talk. I'm in no rush to talk because we obliterated their site," Trump told reporters after his arrival in Washington after a trip to Pittsburgh, referring to U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites last month.

Trump also indicated that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is a possible candidate to replace Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, whose term ends next year, though he praised Powell’s current job.

On trade, Trump said he plans to release tariff letters soon for smaller countries and suggested a uniform tariff rate of “probably over 10%” could be set on certain imports.

He also said the Vietnam trade deal is “pretty well set,” signaling progress in economic relations.

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