Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is set for a high-stakes meeting with US President Donald Trump this Sunday, aiming to secure American backing for a new peace plan to end the nearly four-year war with Russia. The talks at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida come as Kyiv recovers from a severe Russian bombardment, highlighting the urgent need for a diplomatic breakthrough.
A Tense History and a Revised Peace Proposal
The upcoming meeting marks the first face-to-face encounter between the two leaders since October 2025, when President Trump declined Zelensky's request for long-range Tomahawk missiles. Their relationship has been notably strained, famously clashing in the White House on February 28, 2025, during a meeting intended to sign a deal on Ukraine's mineral resources and discuss peace with Russia. Trump accused Zelensky of not being "thankful," stating, "It's going to be very hard to do business like this."
This time, Zelensky arrives bolstered by the full support of key European allies, secured during a conference call en route to Florida. He will present a revised 20-point peace proposal crafted after weeks of intense US-Ukraine negotiations. The plan would halt fighting along current front lines, potentially requiring Ukrainian troop pullbacks to create demilitarized buffer zones. This represents Kyiv's clearest acknowledgment yet of possible territorial concessions, though it stops short of ceding the 20% of the Donetsk region it still controls—a key Russian demand.
High Stakes and Hard Bargains
President Trump, who has made ending the Ukraine war a central promise of his second term as a "president of peace," has been non-committal on the new plan. He has repeatedly blamed both Kyiv and Moscow for the failure to achieve a ceasefire and has insisted he "doesn't have anything until I approve it." The meeting is scheduled for 1:00 pm (1800 GMT) and is expected to last an hour, followed by a joint call with European leaders.
Zelensky has framed the recent Russian drone and missile assault on Kyiv, which left hundreds of thousands without power and heating in freezing temperatures, as proof of Moscow's bad faith. "This attack is again Russia's answer to our peace efforts. And this really showed that Putin doesn't want peace," he stated. The Ukrainian leader also plans to press Trump on the critical need for strong security guarantees to deter future Russian aggression if a ceasefire is reached.
Russian Opposition and European Support
Moscow has shown no sign of accepting the proposed plan. Russian President Vladimir Putin, fresh from announcing the capture of two more eastern towns, warned on Saturday, "If the authorities in Kyiv don't want to settle this business peacefully, we'll resolve all the problems before us by military means." Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov criticized European governments as the "main obstacle" to peace, accusing them of preparing for war with Russia.
Despite Russian opposition, Zelensky expressed hope for "very constructive" talks in Florida. Ukraine continues to insist that more European and US funding and weapons—especially drones—are essential for its defense and negotiating position. The world now watches to see if the Mar-a-Lago summit can produce a viable path to peace or if the devastating conflict will grind on.
