According to CNN, which cited US and European officials familiar with the matter, the Pentagon has cleared the way for Ukraine to receive long-range Tomahawk missiles after concluding that transferring the weapons would not deplete US stockpiles. However, President Donald Trump has yet to give his approval, citing national security concerns despite strong appeals from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and several European allies. Now Trump's approval is awaited.

Trump Weighs Strategic and Political Risks

Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House, where he reportedly said the US “needs” to retain its Tomahawks for homeland defense. Just days earlier, he had publicly hinted that the US possessed “a lot of Tomahawks” that could be sent to Ukraine. The reversal came shortly after a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who warned that such a move could threaten major Russian cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg, potentially escalating tensions without altering the battlefield situation.

Allies Urge Approval Amid Frustration

European officials, buoyed by the Pentagon’s assessment, saw the clearance as a signal that the US had no logistical reason to withhold the missiles. “This was the strongest argument we’d been hearing from Washington — now that’s gone,” one European diplomat said privately. The allies argue that Tomahawks, with their roughly 1,000-mile range, could enable Ukraine to target Russian energy and oil facilities deep inside Russian territory, weakening Moscow’s war infrastructure.

Operational Challenges for Ukraine

Even as the Pentagon expressed no concerns about stockpile levels, defense officials remain unsure how Ukraine would deploy the missiles. Traditionally launched from ships or submarines, Tomahawks would likely need to be fired from land-based systems since Ukraine’s naval capabilities have been largely destroyed. US-made Marine Corps and Army launchers could be adapted, though officials acknowledge training and integration would take time.

A European official noted that Ukrainian engineers have already proven adept at improvising, referencing how they successfully integrated UK-supplied Storm Shadow missiles into Soviet-era aircraft. “If anyone can make it work, they can,” the official said.

Kyiv Pushes for Long-Range Arsenal

Zelensky has continued to lobby for advanced weaponry, arguing that greater strike capacity is vital to ending the war on fair terms. In a recent post on X, he wrote: “Global sanctions and our pinpoint precision are practically syncing up to end this war on terms fair for Ukraine. All deep-strike goals must be fully locked in by year’s end, including expansion of our long-range footprint.”

Although Trump has not ruled out sending the Tomahawks, his decision has been delayed amid growing frustration with Putin’s resistance to peace negotiations. The administration has already imposed new sanctions on Russian oil firms and postponed a planned Trump–Putin meeting in Budapest.

For now, the Pentagon’s clearance places the decision squarely in Trump’s hands — a move that could reshape both the course of the war and Washington’s strategic posture toward Moscow.