Trump, Zelenskyy holds peace talks, territory and security remain unresolved

Anjali Sharma

WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump and the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday met at Ma-ra-lago in Florida stated that negotiations to end the Ukraine war are bearing a deal after talks though difficult issues on territory and security remain unresolved.

Trump spoke to reporters after the meeting, described the discussions as “terrific” and said substantial progress had been made. “We’ve done very well. We’ve had discussions on just about every subject,” he said, adding that the two sides were “very close” to a peace deal.

According to Trump, talks had covered all major issues required to end the conflict.

“Somebody would say 95 per cent. I don’t know the percentage, but we’ve made a lot of progress,” he said, while acknowledged that “one or two very thorny issues” remained unresolved.

Trump said he and Zelensky held follow-up discussions with several European leaders after their bilateral talks.

He cited the scale and implications of the conflict. Leaders from Poland, Italy, the United Kingdom, Norway, France, Finland, and Germany were consulted, along with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

“We thought it was appropriate to speak with them,” Trump said. “Our meeting was excellent.”

Zelensky thanked Trump and his team’s senior members for sustained engagement in the peace effort. He said discussions had covered “all aspects of the peace framework” and pointed to what he called “great achievements” across several areas.

Zelensky said the two sides were close to finalizing security guarantees, which he described as central to ending the war. “We agreed that security guarantees are a key milestone in achieving lasting peace,” he said.

He added that as the US-Ukraine security guarantees were “almost agreed”, military components of the plan were “100 per cent agreed”. A separate prosperity plan, he said, was still being finalized.

Trump cautioned on territorial questions, particularly the future of the Donbas region. When asked whether an agreement had been reached, he said, “The word agreed is too strong. But we’re getting closer.”

He said Russia’s position on Donbas was widely known. “That’s what they’ve been asking for,” Trump said, adding that the issue needs to be “ironed out”.

Zelensky said Ukraine’s stance remained rooted in law and public approval. Any difficult provisions, he said, could require parliamentary approval or even a referendum. “We have to respect our law and our people,” he said. “It’s the land of our nation.”

Trump said he had held what he described as a “very productive” telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin before meeting Zelensky in Florida.

“I just had a good and very productive telephone call with President Putin of Russia prior to my meeting with President Zelensky of Ukraine,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

The Kremlin confirmed the phone call, according to Russian officials.

Both leaders said working groups would continue discussions in the coming weeks.

Trump said the US team would include senior officials and would also engage directly with Russia. “Because to work with ourselves doesn’t really solve much of a problem,” he said.

Zelensky said Trump had decided to arrange a meeting in the future, most probably in Washington. European leaders might attend the meeting. Asked about timing, Trump said an agreement could come within weeks if talks continued smoothly. “And if it went really poorly, it’s not going to happen,” he added.