Zelensky, Trump discuss bolstering Ukraine's air defense in phone call

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday that he had discussed the possibility of bolstering his country's air defense in a phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump.

According to him, the two leaders talked about opportunities to bolster Ukraine's air defense, as well as concrete agreements to achieve that goal.

Zelensky said that there are "good options and solid ideas" on how to strengthen Ukraine.

According to U.S. media reports, there have been discussions about the possibility of Ukraine acquiring Tomahawk cruise missiles. However, it's unclear if any final decisions have been reached.

Earlier, U.S. Vice President JD Vance said that the White House is considering supplying Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles that could reach Moscow, potentially through NATO European member states.

Aleksey Zhuravlev, the first deputy chairman of the Russian parliamentary defense committee, said on Saturday that Russia has measures to counter Tomahawk cruise missiles. Nothing that the S-350 air defense system was specifically designed to defend against Tomahawk missiles and similar threats, he said that for Russia's air defense systems, Tomahawk cruise missiles are not seen as difficult targets.

Although Tomahawk cruise missiles have been supplied to U.S. NATO allies, the United States still retains control over the system, said Zhuravlev.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday said that if the U.S. provides Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine, Russia will enhance its air defense systems in response.

International gold and silver prices closed lower on Thursday.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for December delivery lost 1.20 percent to settle at 4,407.30 U.S. dollars per ounce, while silver futures for December delivery dropped 5.42 percent to close at 64.927 dollars per ounce.