Zelenskyy seeks urgent meeting with Trump to finalize Ukraine peace deal—top aide

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is seeking a meeting with US President Donald Trump “as soon as possible” — potentially over Thanksgiving — to finalize a joint US-Ukrainian agreement on ending the war, Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, told Axios.

Yermak emphasized that US and Ukrainian officials have agreed in principle on most aspects of the plan, which has been heavily revised from the original 28-point US proposal. However, Zelenskyy wishes to personally negotiate sensitive issues, particularly territorial concessions, with Trump. “The primary gap to be bridged by the presidents is over territory,” Yermak said, noting that other elements of the draft now align with Ukraine’s interests and respect its red lines.

The revised plan includes robust security guarantees from the US and European allies, which Yermak described as “legally binding” and unprecedented for Ukraine. He added, “I think it now looks very solid. It’s a historical decision of President Trump and the United States to issue these strong security guarantees, which Ukraine never had before.”

While Ukraine maintains its constitutional commitment to NATO, Yermak stressed that the plan reflects the current reality: “We are not in NATO.” The plan’s original points restricting Ukraine’s future NATO membership and stationing of troops have been removed or amended.

Yermak also praised US negotiators, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, and envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, for their cooperation.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned that Moscow’s position could change if the updated plan deviates from understandings reached between Trump and President Vladimir Putin.

Despite ongoing Russian attacks on Kyiv, Yermak expressed cautious optimism: “If the US and Ukraine can finalize a joint position, and Trump can press Putin to negotiate on those terms, the end of the war could be near.”

By Vafa Guliyeva