Takeaways from Trump's Florida Meeting with Ukraine's Zelensky
Trump said talks are moving closer to a deal but warned key issues, including territory, remain unresolved.
President Donald Trump met Sunday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for nearly three hours at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, as US-led efforts to end the war in Ukraine continued.
Trump said he believes negotiations are moving closer to a peace deal but stressed the talks remain complex and could still fall apart.
He declined to give a firm timeline, saying it would take weeks to know whether an agreement is possible and warning that unexpected issues could derail the process.
He said “one or two very thorny issues” remain, including the future of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, which Russia has demanded Ukraine surrender. Trump said progress is being made but acknowledged the issue remains a major hurdle.
Any give up’s of territory would face legal limits in Ukraine, where the constitution requires a national referendum to approve ceding land.
Trump described the meeting as “excellent” and said progress had been made toward ending the war. During their talks, Trump and Zelensky also spoke by phone with European leaders, including officials from several NATO countries and the European Union, to discuss next steps.
Trump said he would be open to traveling to Ukraine or speaking before its parliament if it would help secure a deal, though he suggested such a trip was unlikely. Zelensky welcomed the idea.
Despite the diplomatic push, fighting continued in Ukraine on Sunday, with Russian attacks killing and wounding civilians and following Kyiv’s longest drone and missile assault of the year.
Any agreement would still require approval from Russian President Vladimir Putin, as the war continues on the ground.
