US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says talks with Ukraine over an agreement to end the Russia-Ukraine war have been productive, but “there is still a lot to be done.”
The negotiations, held in Florida, were attended by a Ukrainian delegation led by Secretary of the National Security Council Rustem Umerov, the new chief negotiator for Ukraine.
President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner also attended the meeting. Witkoff is due to visit Moscow for talks next week.
Umerov was appointed to replace the Ukrainian president's chief negotiator, Andrei Yermak, who resigned after an anti-corruption raid on his home.
Sunday's meeting is the latest step in two weeks of intense diplomatic activity.
It followed the leak of a 28-point US peace plan that shocked Ukraine and its European allies by showing support for Russia, which invaded Ukraine nearly four years ago.
“It's not just about the ceasefire,” Rubio said at the meeting in Hallandale Beach, north of Miami.
“It's also about the conditions that ensure Ukraine's long-term prosperity… I think we've achieved that today, but there's still a lot of work to be done.”
He also told the Ukrainian delegation that the goal of peace talks with Russia is to make Ukraine “sovereign, independent and prosperous.”
As Sunday's talks began, Umerov said: “We are discussing the future of Ukraine, the security of Ukraine, the absence of a repeat of Ukrainian aggression, the prosperity of Ukraine, how to restore Ukraine.”
“The US can hear us,” he said in English. “The US supports us. The US is working alongside us.”
He later described the talks as “productive and successful” and Rubio said they were “very productive and helpful.”
Trump previously said he would send Vitkov and possibly also Kushner to Moscow this week to meet with President Vladimir Putin to discuss the peace plan, which has been significantly revised.
One of the most important unresolved issues is the fate of Ukrainian territory, which Russia has either annexed or controls.
Negotiations in Florida were “not easy,” a source close to the Ukrainian delegation told AFP news agency.
“But everyone is trying to be constructive and find a solution,” the source added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is due to visit Paris on Monday for talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, a strong ally.
Tens of thousands of soldiers were killed or wounded, as well as thousands of civilians. at least seven million people have become refugees since the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022.
The conflict between the two former Soviet states began in 2014, when Ukraine's pro-Russian president was overthrown and Russia responded by annexing Crimea and supporting armed uprisings in eastern Ukraine.
