U.S. President Donald Trump Shares Column Urging South Korea to Sell M-SAM II Missiles to Ukraine

[Financial News] U.S. President Donald Trump shared on social media a column arguing that South Korea’s M-SAM II air-defense weapon should be supplied to Ukraine.
On the 4th local time, Trump shared on Truth Social a column published the previous day by The Washington Post. The column was written by Marc Thiessen, a researcher at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI), who previously wrote speeches for former President George W. Bush. Thiessen has also been identified by local media as one of Trump’s advisers.
In a column titled “How Trump Can Help Ukraine Build Its Own Patriot Missiles,” Thiessen discussed the U.S. air-defense interceptor MIM-104 Patriot. He argued that Ukraine would need additional interceptors immediately, even if it obtained a license from the United States to produce Patriot missiles. “To meet this urgent need, Trump should pressure South Korea to sell Ukraine its M-SAM II (Cheongung-II), known as the ‘Korean Patriot,’ from its own stockpiles,” he wrote.
Thiessen stated, “Trump is already justifiably angry with South Korea for refusing to support the Strait of Hormuz,” adding, “There is no better way for South Korea to improve relations, while also easing the burden on the United States to provide Ukraine with interceptor missiles.”
Thiessen argued that selling M-SAM II missiles would also serve South Korea’s national interests. He said South Korea could test the system’s performance against North Korean missiles used in attacks on Ukraine. Thiessen added, “This is an opportunity for South Korea to step up and prove that it is a reliable ally.”
Trump shared the column’s headline and link on Truth Social without adding any statement of his own.
Earlier, after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Türkiye in June, Trump suggested that Ukraine might be granted a license to produce Patriot missiles. Since the war began in 2022, Ukraine has repeatedly appealed to the United States and NATO countries for air-defense missiles to intercept Russian missiles. The U.S. military currently also faces a shortage of Patriot missiles needed in the Middle East amid the war with Iran.

However, in an interview on July 30, Trump said he was unsure whether to grant Ukraine a license to produce the missiles. In an article published on the 10th of last month, The Daily Telegraph reported that the United States was reluctant to authorize production because of concerns that Patriot technology could fall into Russia’s hands.

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