Florida talks raise hopes for Ukraine peace as territory dispute lingers UPDATED

US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said they believe a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine is nearing completion after holding talks in Florida, although disagreements over territory remain unresolved.

Speaking to reporters after meeting Zelenskyy at his Mar-a-Lago estate, and following a separate phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on December 28, Trump said Moscow and Kyiv were “closer than ever” to reaching a deal, Caliber.Az reports per foreign media.

“We have made a lot of progress on ending that war,” Trump said during a joint news conference with Zelenskyy, adding that they would see if it gets done and that it was very close.

Zelenskyy said a 20-point peace plan presented last week was “90 percent agreed” and confirmed that US-Ukraine security guarantees were “100 percent agreed” to.

“We agreed that security guarantees are key milestone in achieving lasting peace, and our teams will keep working on all aspects,” Zelenskyy said.

However, the talks failed to deliver a breakthrough on the politically sensitive issue of Ukrainian territory.

Trump acknowledged that one or two very thorny issues remain, including the status of the eastern Donbas region, which Russia annexed following its full-scale invasion in 2022.

He said the sides were moving closer to consensus on a US-backed proposal to establish a “free economic zone” in parts of the region, under which Ukrainian forces would withdraw as part of a broader settlement.

“I would not say agreed, but we’re getting closer to an agreement on that, and that’s a big issue. Certainly, that’s one of the big issues, and… it’s unresolved,” Trump said.

Zelenskyy reiterated that territorial questions should be decided by the Ukrainian people and suggested that different elements of the peace plan could be put to referendums.

Following their meeting, Trump and Zelenskyy held a joint phone call with several European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Trump has made ending Russia’s nearly four-year war in Ukraine a priority since returning to the White House in January, while publicly acknowledging the complexity of negotiations and expressing frustration with both Kyiv and Moscow.

Ahead of his talks with Zelenskyy, Trump said Russia and Ukraine were in the “final stages of talking” and had the “makings of a deal that’s good for Ukraine, good for everybody”.

23:09, December 28

The meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has started in Florida to discuss a potential Ukraine peace agreement.

Trump expressed confidence in the Russian leadership’s serious intentions to reach an agreement on Ukraine, Caliber.Az reports, citing RBC-Ukraine. 

He also stated that, in his view, both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskyy want peace.

Additionally, the US president said he believes the outlines of a deal on Ukraine are already in place.

The Ukrainian delegation, alongside President Zelenskyy, includes Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council Rustem Umerov, Economy Minister Oleksii Sobolev, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Andrii Hnatov, Presidential Office adviser Oleksandr Bevz, and First Deputy Foreign Minister Serhiy Kyslytsia.

By Jeyhun Aghazada