Ukraine’s president highlighted “significant progress” in negotiations, while Moscow said Kiev was working towards a “torpedo” agreement.
Published December 26, 2025
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is scheduled to meet with US President Donald Trump in Florida on Sunday to discuss the territorial dispute that continues to hinder progress towards ending Russia’s war with Ukraine.
President Zelenskiy announced Friday’s meeting, saying it could be decisive as the United States steps up efforts to broker an end to Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II. “Many things could be decided by the new year,” Zelenskiy said.
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Territory remains the most contentious issue in negotiations. President Zelenskiy confirmed the elevation of the status of eastern Ukraine and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which has been under Russian control since the early months of the Russian invasion.
“As for sensitive issues, we will discuss both the Donbass and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. We will definitely discuss other issues as well,” he told reporters in a WhatsApp chat.
The Russian government has demanded that Kyiv withdraw from parts of the Donetsk region still under Ukrainian control, as it seeks full authority over the wider Donbass region, which includes Donetsk and Luhansk. Ukraine rejected that request and instead called for an immediate cessation of fighting along existing fronts.
territorial concession
In an attempt to bridge the gap, the United States has floated the idea of establishing a free economic zone if Ukraine relinquishes control of the disputed territory, but details of how such a plan would work remain unclear.
President Zelenskiy reiterated that territorial concessions require popular approval. He said decisions regarding land must be taken by Ukrainians themselves, and in some cases through a referendum.
Beyond territory, Zelenskiy said his talks with President Trump would focus on refining the draft agreement, including economic and security issues. He said the security agreement with the United States is almost finalized and the 20-point peace framework is nearing completion.
Ukraine has sought binding guarantees after previous international agreements failed to stop Russia’s invasion, which began in February 2022.
President Trump has previously expressed impatience with the pace of negotiations, but has indicated he would be directly involved if they reach a meaningful stage.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week that his country is the only intermediary that can talk to both countries to secure a peace agreement. At the same time, it downplayed the importance of the conflict to Washington.
“This is not our war. It’s a war on another continent,” he said.
President Zelensky said European leaders may participate remotely in Sunday’s discussions and confirmed that he had already briefed Finnish President Alexander Stubb on what he called “significant developments.”
Despite President Zelensky’s claims, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said the revised version of the US peace plan promoted by Kiev was “fundamentally different” from the previous version negotiated with Washington and accused Ukraine of working to “disrupt” the peace talks.
“Our ability to make that final push and reach an agreement will depend on our own efforts and the political will of our opponents,” he said in a television interview on Friday.
Ryabkov said any agreement must stay within the terms laid out between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at their August summit, which Ukraine and European countries have criticized as being too accommodating to Russia’s war aims.
On the ground, Moscow has stepped up attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and the southern port city of Odesa, and on Friday an attack on Kharkov killed two people.
