Trump, Zelenskyy signal progress in Ukraine peace talks, key issues remain

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a detailed meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, discussed a range of issues aimed at ending the war in Ukraine amid continued conflict between the two countries. Both leaders appeared content with the results of the current talks, appreciating each other's progress, and expressed hope that the pending issues would be resolved soon. They both, however, decline to say exactly how much more time it’ll take to permanently end the conflict in Ukraine.

Before the talks, President Trump spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss key issues, a meeting a Kremlin envoy described as “very productive”. “I just had a good and very productive telephone call with President Putin of Russia before my meeting, at 1:00 P.M. today, with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

The meeting came amid Russia’s sustained attack on Kyiv and the surrounding regions of Ukraine last week. 

Trump described his meeting with Zelensky as “excellent”, saying that they had a “terrific meeting”. “We discussed a lot of things…I do think we’re getting a lot closer, maybe very close…we have made a lot of progress on ending that war,” Trump said at a press briefing after the meeting, CNN reported.

Trump said only “one or two very thorny issues” remain to be addressed, and believed that about 95% of the issues have been resolved.

Trump, expressing confidence that talks will be resolved, said the peace talks are “highly complex”. “In a few weeks, we will know one way or the other, I think,” he told reporters while standing alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Florida.

He said there could be unexpected issues that arise that stymie the entire effort.

“We could have something where one item that you’re not thinking about is big, breaks it up. Look, it’s been a very difficult negotiation,” he said.

Zelensky thanked President Trump and his team for the negotiations, saying, “Ukraine is ready for peace”. “Together, we must – and can – implement our vision for the sequencing of steps toward peace.”

He said the two had a “substantive discussion” on all issues and appreciated the progress achieved by the American and Ukrainian teams in recent weeks. “Special thanks to Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner for their engagement and full commitment, as well as to our team — first of all, to Rustem Umerov and Andrii Hnatov.”

He said the two teams discussed all the aspects of the peace framework and achieved significant results. “We also discussed the sequence of further actions. We agreed that security guarantees are key on the path to achieving a lasting peace, and our teams will continue working on all aspects. We agreed that our teams would meet as early as next week to finalise all the discussed matters. We also agreed with President Trump that he will host Ukrainian and European leaders in Washington, D.C., in January.”

Despite ongoing diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire, the Russia-Ukraine war has entered in its fourth year now.