US President Donald Trump has said that he and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky were "getting a lot closer, maybe very close" to an agreement to end the war in Ukraine, but acknowledged that the fate of the Donbas region remains a key unresolved issue.
President Trump, who had promised to finish the war on day one of his presidency, said he was embarking on a year-end diplomatic sprint as he welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Sunday.
At a joint news conference after the meeting, both leaders reported progress on two of the most contentious issues in peace talks – security guarantees for Ukraine and the division of eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region that Russia has sought to capture.
Both Trump and Zelensky offered few details and did not provide a deadline for completing a peace deal. Trump said it will be clear "in a few weeks" whether negotiations to end the war will succeed. He said a few "thorny issues" around territory must be resolved.
Zelensky said an agreement on security guarantees for Ukraine has been reached. Trump was slightly more cautious, saying that they were 95 percent of the way to such an agreement, and that he expected European countries to "take over a big part" of that effort with US backing.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Monday that Kyiv's allies would meet in Paris next month to discuss security guarantees as part of the peace agreement.
"We will bring together the countries of the Coalition of the Willing in Paris in early January to finalise each one's concrete contributions," Macron said on X after speaking with Zelensky and Trump.
Zelensky reveals US-Ukraine plan to end Russian war, key questions remain
Donbas unresolved
Zelensky has said previously that he hopes to soften a US proposal for Ukrainian forces to withdraw completely from Donbas, a Russian demand that would mean ceding some territory held by Ukrainian forces. While Moscow insists on getting all of Donbas, Kyiv wants the map frozen at current battle lines.
Both Trump and Zelensky said on Sunday the future of the Donbas had not been settled, though the US president said discussions are "moving in the right direction". The United States, seeking a compromise, has proposed a free economic zone if Ukraine leaves the area, although it remains unclear how that zone would function in practical terms.
"It's unresolved, but it's getting a lot closer. That's a very tough issue," Trump said.
Nor did the leaders offer much insight into what agreements they had reached on providing security for Ukraine after the war ends, something Zelensky described Sunday as "the key milestone in achieving a lasting peace".
Russia has said any foreign troop deployment in Ukraine is unacceptable.
Zelensky said any peace agreement would have to be approved by Ukraine's parliament, or by a referendum. Trump said he would be willing to speak to parliament if that would secure the deal.
EU greenlights €90bn loan for Ukraine, without frozen Russian assets
Kremlin 'support' for negotiations
Shortly before Zelensky and his delegation arrived at Trump's Florida residence, Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke in a call described as "productive" by the US president and "friendly" by Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov.
Ushakov, in Moscow, said Putin told Trump a 60-day ceasefire proposed by the European Union and Ukraine would prolong the war. The Kremlin aide also said Ukraine needs to make a decision regarding the Donbas "without further delay".
Trump said he and Putin spoke for more than two hours. He said the Russian president pledged to help rebuild Ukraine, including by supplying cheap energy. "Russia wants to see Ukraine succeed," Trump said. "It sounds a little strange."
As Trump praised Putin, Zelensky tilted his head and smiled.
Trump said he would call Putin again following the meeting with Zelensky.
The Kremlin expressed support for Trump's negotiations.
"The whole world appreciates President Trump and his team’s peace efforts," Kirill Dmitriev, Putin's special envoy, posted on X early on Monday.
(with newswires)
