Trump and Zelensky meet Sunday in Florida as negotiators seek to make significant progress toward ending Russia's nearly four-year war in Ukraine.
On Friday, the Ukrainian president told reporters that the two leaders would discuss security guarantees for Ukraine. Zelensky said the draft 20-point peace plan is “about 90% ready” and noted that “a lot can be decided before the New Year” as the United States, Ukraine and European allies seek to end the war.
“In my opinion, the agreement between us and the United States is almost ready,” Zelensky said.
But Mr. Trump was cautious when asked about the plan in an interview with Politico Friday.
“He doesn’t have anything unless I approve it,” Trump said of Zelensky. “So let's see what he's got.”
Mr Trump is spending the Christmas holidays at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach.
Zelensky, who first announced the meeting, said on Thursday he had a “good conversation” with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Mr Trump’s son-in-law.
Russian Presidential Envoy Kirill Dmitriev also met with US envoys in Florida over the weekend.
A draft 20-point plan agreed upon by U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators is being reviewed by the Kremlin, although Moscow has shown no willingness to compromise on its territorial demands.
Zelensky conceded Earlier this week, he was willing to withdraw Ukrainian troops from Ukraine's eastern industrial heartland if Russia stood down and allowed the region to become a demilitarized zone under international supervision.
But Moscow has also not signaled its desire to withdraw troops and has demanded that Ukraine give up the remaining territory it holds in the eastern Donbass region. Ukraine categorically rejected this idea.
“I think we've made some progress on that front,” Mr. Trump said of peace in Ukraine in a telephone interview with the New York WABC talk show “Sid and Friends in the Morning.”
White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt said in December that Trump was “extremely disappointed on both sides in this war.”
The last time Trump and Zelensky met in person was on October 17 at the White House. The two men had a rocky relationship. Their first personal meeting in Februaryduring Mr. Trump's second term, became controversial, with Vice President J.D. Vance accusing Mr. Zelensky of not saying “thank you,” Mr. Trump telling Mr. Zelensky he had “no cards right now” and the Ukrainian team leaving the White House early.
