Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has announced plans to travel to Florida this weekend for high-level talks with US President Donald Trump, as diplomatic efforts continue to find a way out of Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.
Zelensky said the meeting is expected to take place on Sunday and will centre on a US-backed peace framework that contains 20 key points, alongside separate proposals dealing with security guarantees for Ukraine. He said the talks could play a decisive role as negotiators push to finalise the plan.
Despite the renewed momentum, clear differences remain between Kyiv and Moscow. A senior Russian official said the US proposal under discussion was “radically different” from what Russia has been negotiating with Washington, highlighting the deep divisions that still exist.
Russia has described the talks as showing “slow but steady progress” but has remained silent on Zelensky’s suggestion that both sides withdraw troops from eastern Ukraine, including the Donbas region, as part of a reciprocal arrangement.
Ukraine has consistently pressed for firm security assurances from the US and its allies. Zelensky has also floated the idea of setting up a demilitarised free economic zone in parts of Donbas that Russian forces have failed to seize militarily.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Zelensky said negotiations around the 20-point plan were close to completion. “Our task is to make sure everything is 100% ready,” he said, noting that most of the work had already been done.
In a message posted online, Zelensky said there was urgency behind the talks. “We are not losing a single day. We have agreed on a meeting at the highest level – with President Trump in the near future. A lot can be decided before the new year,” he wrote.
At the same time, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s senior aides have continued discussions with US officials, including phone calls following the return of Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev from Florida last weekend.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov struck an optimistic tone but accused Ukraine of trying to undermine the negotiations around the US proposal. He said the coming days could prove critical.
“I think December 25, 2025, will remain in all our memories as a milestone when we truly came close to a solution. But whether we can make the final push and reach an agreement depends on our work and the political will of the other side,” Ryabkov said in remarks aired on Russian state television.
As diplomatic contacts intensified, the fighting on the ground continued. Shortly after news of Zelensky’s planned visit emerged, authorities in Kharkiv said a Russian air strike had killed two people and injured several others.
Images released by Reuters showed Ukrainian soldiers sharing a Christmas meal while battles continued along the front lines.
Zelensky and Trump have held several meetings this year, following a tense White House encounter in February that ended in open confrontation. Their most recent meeting in October was described by officials as far more constructive.
The confirmation of the Florida talks came after Zelensky revealed that he had spent an hour on the phone on Christmas Day with Trump’s key negotiators, special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Zelensky said the conversation produced “new ideas” for ending the conflict and described it as “a really good conversation,” signalling progress behind the scenes.
Under the US proposal, a demilitarised area would be created in eastern Ukraine, where neither side would deploy troops. The idea is seen as a compromise that avoids resolving the sensitive issue of legal ownership of the disputed territories.
Earlier this week, Zelensky said Ukraine could pull its forces back by up to 40 kilometres from the eastern front line to create an economic zone, provided Russia does the same in occupied parts of Ukraine’s industrial heartland.
Ukraine has already secured changes to an earlier 28-point draft plan prepared by Witkoff, which had drawn criticism for favouring Russia.
Zelensky said the weekend discussions in Florida would examine several documents, including proposed US security guarantees and a separate economic agreement.
He has repeatedly said territorial control remains the hardest issue to resolve, along with the future of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which is currently under Russian control.
The White House has suggested that Ukraine and Russia share the electricity produced by the plant, the largest in Europe, as part of a broader settlement.
Moscow is expected to resist several elements of the revised US plan, particularly those related to territory. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused Western European states of trying to disrupt the progress made so far.
Putin has insisted on full control of the Donbas region, including parts of Donetsk that Russian forces have not occupied.
The latest version of the plan was outlined publicly by Zelensky this week, marking the first detailed update since the earlier draft was leaked in November.
Under the new proposals, the US and European partners would provide security guarantees modelled on Nato’s Article 5, pledging support if Russia launches another invasion.
The deal would also keep Ukraine’s military strength at about 800,000 troops, a figure Moscow has demanded be reduced.
Meanwhile, attacks have continued across Ukraine. Casualties were reported in the central city of Uman and in Kharkiv. Ukraine’s air force said it shot down 73 drones overnight.
Russia said it had intercepted Ukrainian drones and missiles, including British-made Storm Shadows, while Ukraine reported strikes on oil and gas facilities in Russia’s Rostov and Krasnodar regions.
