Donald Trump said on Sunday there was a “good chance” of a deal to end the war in Ukraine after the latest US negotiations with Kyiv, as his special envoy prepares to travel to Russia for follow-up talks. After hours of what both sides called “productive” discussions in Florida, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said “more work” was required. A source in Kyiv’s delegation characterised the discussions as “not easy”. The talks set the stage for a visit to Moscow by Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, who is expected to discuss Ukraine with Russian president Vladimir Putin on Tuesday. “Ukraine’s got some difficult little problems,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, referring to a corruption investigation that recently forced President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to sack his chief of staff and top negotiator. “But I think that there’s a good chance we can make a deal.”
Rubio earlier told reporters the Florida talks were productive but “there’s more work to be done”. “We continue to be realistic about how difficult this is, but optimistic.” Rubio also said: “It’s not just about the terms that ends fighting. It’s about also the terms that set up Ukraine for long-term prosperity.”
The talks – also attended by Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner – come as Kyiv faces pressure on military and political fronts. At least six people were killed and dozens wounded across Ukraine over the weekend, report Dan Sabbagh and Jane Clinton. A drone attack on the outskirts of Kyiv on Saturday night killed one person and wounded 11, the regional governor said. A Ukrainian security source said Kyiv was responsible for attacks by naval drones on two oil tankers off Turkey’s Black Sea coast that it believed were covertly transporting sanctioned Russian oil. And the Ukrainian government has faced turbulence as Andriy Yermak, Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, was forced to resign on Friday after his flat was searched by anti-corruption officials investigating a kickback scheme.
Zelenskyy is to meet the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris on Monday seeking to shore up European support. The French foreign minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, said in comments to the La Tribune Dimanche newspaper on Sunday that the meeting aimed “to move the negotiations forward”. “Peace is within reach, if Vladimir Putin abandons his delusional hope of reconstituting the Soviet empire by first subjugating Ukraine,” he added.
The Turkish government has condemned the Ukrainian drone attacks on two Russian “shadow fleet” oil tankers off Turkey’s Black Sea coast. Foreign ministry spokesperson Oncu Keceli said the attacks on the Kairos and Virat vessels happened inside Turkey’s exclusive economic zone and “have posed serious risks to navigation, life, property and environmental safety in the region”. Ukraine has said it used naval drones to hit the tankers in quick succession late Friday afternoon. Crew members onboard both vessels were reported to be safe.
Zelenskyy said he had talks with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and thanked her for backing Kyiv’s resistance to Russia’s invasion. “Ursula is paying close attention to the need to strengthen our resilience amid Russia’s constant strikes on our infrastructure and the energy sector,” he said on X on Sunday.
