Trump, Zelenskyy say progress made in Ukraine peace talks, but territory remains sticking point

US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine had made significant progress during meetings in Florida, though both acknowledged that key issues remain unresolved.

Speaking to reporters after the talks at Mar-a-Lago, Trump said that “one or two very thorny issues” were still outstanding, singling out the question of land currently occupied by Russia. Zelenskyy, for his part, said the two sides had agreed on around 90% of a proposed 20-point peace plan.

“We had a substantive conversation on all issues and highly value the progress that the Ukrainian and American teams have made over the past weeks,” Zelenskyy said in a statement on Telegram.

Trump said security guarantees for Ukraine were “close to 95% done”, though he stopped short of committing to US logistical support or troop deployments to deter future Russian attacks. He added that a proposal to turn the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine into a demilitarised zone remained unresolved.

“Some of that land has been taken,” Trump said. “Some of that land is maybe up for grabs, but it may be taken over the next period of a number of months.”

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and currently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory. Moscow holds around 75% of the Donetsk region and nearly all of neighbouring Luhansk — collectively known as the Donbas. Russia has demanded that Ukraine withdraw from the remaining areas it still controls there, while Kyiv has proposed turning the region into a free economic zone policed by Ukrainian forces.

Trump has repeatedly shifted his stance on Ukraine’s lost territories. In September, he suggested Kyiv might be able to reclaim occupied land, before later reversing that position. “That is a very tough issue,” he said. “One that will get resolved.”

Zelenskyy said US and Ukrainian teams would meet again next week to continue discussions, and suggested that Ukrainian officials could travel to the White House in January, possibly alongside European leaders.

Trump also floated the idea of trilateral talks between the US, Russia and Ukraine, saying they could take place “at the right time”. However, he cautioned that negotiations could collapse if they went “really badly”, allowing the war to continue.

Earlier, Trump held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. While offering few details, Trump said he believed Putin “wants Ukraine to succeed”, but acknowledged that Moscow opposed any ceasefire that would allow Ukraine to hold a referendum in occupied areas.

“I understand that position,” Trump said.

Russian foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov said the call was initiated by Trump and that both leaders discussed recent EU and Ukrainian proposals to end the war. Ushakov said Trump and Putin shared the view that a temporary ceasefire proposed by Brussels and Kyiv would only prolong the conflict.

European leaders welcomed the reported progress but stressed the need for firm security commitments. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said talks in Florida had shown “good progress” while underlining the importance of “ironclad security guarantees from day one”.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Ukraine’s allies would meet in Paris early next year to finalise their contributions. “We will bring together the countries of the Coalition of the Willing in Paris in early January to finalise each one’s concrete contributions,” Macron said in a post on X.