Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky meet as talks on a possible Ukraine peace deal continue.
Credit : Joshua Sukoff, Shutterstock
The message from Donald Trump was upbeat, almost confident. Standing next to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Florida on Sunday, December 28, the US president said the two sides were now “a lot closer, maybe very close” to a deal that could bring the war in Ukraine to an end.
But even as he spoke of progress, Trump made it clear that some of the hardest questions are still unanswered. Chief among them: what happens to eastern Ukraine, and in particular the contested Donbas region.
The two leaders were speaking after meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, where they discussed what Trump described as movement on two of the most sensitive issues in the talks – security guarantees for Ukraine and the future of territory Russia has been trying to take since the start of the war.
Security guarantees edging forward
On security, both leaders struck a cautiously positive tone.
Zelensky said an agreement had been reached on guarantees to protect Ukraine after the war ends, calling it a key milestone. Trump was slightly more reserved, saying talks were about “95 per cent” complete and stressing that Europe would be expected to take on much of the responsibility, with US support rather than direct leadership.
No details were given on what those guarantees would look like in practice, a silence that reflects how sensitive the issue remains. Russia has repeatedly said it would not accept the presence of foreign troops in Ukraine, something that complicates any long-term security arrangement.
French President Emmanuel Macron, reacting after the meeting, said progress had indeed been made. In a post on X, he confirmed that countries from the so-called “Coalition of the Willing” would meet in Paris in early January to finalise what he called their “concrete contributions”.
Donbas still the biggest obstacle
If security is moving forward, territory is where negotiations slow down.
Trump and Zelensky both acknowledged that the future of the Donbas remains unresolved. Russia wants full control of the region, while Ukraine has made clear it wants any agreement to reflect the current battle lines, rather than giving up land held by its forces.
Zelensky has previously said he hopes to soften a US-backed proposal that would require Ukrainian troops to withdraw completely from Donbas – a move Kyiv sees as unacceptable.
On Sunday, Trump said discussions on the region were “moving in the right direction” but admitted it was still a “very tough issue”. The United States has floated the idea of creating a free economic zone if Ukraine were to leave the area, though how that would work remains unclear.
“It’s unresolved,” Trump said plainly. “But it’s getting closer.”
Zelensky also stressed that any peace deal would need approval inside Ukraine, either through parliament or a referendum. Trump said he would be willing to speak directly to Ukrainian lawmakers if that helped push an agreement through.
Trump speaks to Putin first
Just before Zelensky arrived in Florida, Trump held a lengthy phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin – a fact that added another layer to the day’s diplomacy.
Trump said the two spoke for more than two hours and described the conversation as productive. The Kremlin struck a similarly positive tone, with adviser Yuri Ushakov calling it friendly.
According to Ushakov, Putin rejected a proposed 60-day ceasefire backed by the EU and Ukraine, arguing it would only prolong the conflict. He also said Ukraine needed to make a decision on Donbas “without further delay”.
Trump said Putin had expressed a willingness to help rebuild Ukraine after the war, including by supplying low-cost energy. “Russia wants to see Ukraine succeed,” Trump said, before adding, “It sounds a little strange.”
As Trump praised Putin, Zelensky was seen tilting his head and smiling – a brief moment that captured the awkward balance of the talks.
The Kremlin later publicly backed Trump’s mediation. Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev wrote on X that Trump’s peace efforts were appreciated worldwide.
Nuclear plant talks as fighting continues
Negotiators have also been discussing the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which remains under Russian control. Trump said progress had been made and suggested the facility could restart quickly, calling it a “big step” that it had not been bombed.
The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed that power line repairs had begun after a local ceasefire.
All of this comes as fighting continues on the ground. Just a day before Zelensky’s visit, Russian forces launched hundreds of missiles and drones at Kyiv and other cities, knocking out electricity and heating in parts of the capital.
Zelensky described the attacks as Russia’s response to US-backed peace efforts. Trump, however, said he believed both Putin and Zelensky were serious about ending the war.
European leaders joined parts of Sunday’s talks by phone. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Europe was ready to keep working with Ukraine and the US, underlining that strong security guarantees would be essential.
A spokesperson for UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer echoed that view, stressing the urgency of ending what he called a “barbaric war”.
For now, the language is hopeful. The meetings are frequent. But until the questions of land and long-term security are settled, the distance between “very close” and a signed peace deal remains hard to measure.
