Trump Says Ukraine Peace Deal 'Very Close' as Donbas and Territory Remain Unresolved

After nearly two hours of talks at Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump's Florida residence, the US president and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy stepped up to a news conference and described a negotiation that has moved a long way but has not finished. Trump called the meeting "excellent" and said Ukraine was now "a lot closer" to a deal. Both men also conceded that "one or two very thorny issues" remain.

The two leaders said they had gone through "all aspects" of a proposed 20-point peace framework meant to end Russia's war in Ukraine. Zelenskyy put numbers on the progress: the plan, he said, is "90% agreed," and the security guarantees between the United States and Ukraine are "100% agreed." Trump offered a slightly different figure for the guarantees, 95%. Zelenskyy said the two sides regard those guarantees as a key milestone toward lasting peace and that their teams will keep working on every aspect of the plan.

Trump framed the progress as cumulative rather than the product of a single afternoon. "We've made a lot of progress today, but really we've made it over the last month," he said, adding that this is "not a one-day process deal" and that it involves "very complicated stuff." He suggested the outcome would likely become clear "in a few weeks," but declined to offer a firm timeline for concluding an agreement.

When reporters asked which issues were still open, Trump pointed to disputes over Ukrainian territory. The most contentious is the eastern Donbas region. Russian President Vladimir Putin wants it brought under Russian control as a condition for ending the war, even though Moscow does not fully occupy the area. Ukraine has previously rejected such demands. Zelenskyy said Kyiv's stance rests on domestic law and public sentiment: "I have to respect our law and our people." He said Ukraine's position is "very clear" and "different to Russia's," which is why, in his words, Trump called it a very tough question.

Trump was also asked about the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which Russia has held since the early weeks of the war in February 2022. He said Putin is cooperating on reopening it. "He wants to see that open," Trump said, adding that Putin "hasn't hit it with missiles."

The president said he had spoken with Putin earlier in the day, and publicly described that call as positive before sitting down with Zelenskyy. He insisted the Russian leader is "very serious" about peace, even though Russian attacks on Kyiv were launched ahead of the Florida talks. Trump also said Russia "wants to see Ukraine succeed," and he repeatedly praised Zelenskyy as "brave." The reporting does not give casualty figures from the Kyiv attacks.

The meeting is the latest phase of Trump's year-long effort to broker a ceasefire. During his campaign he repeatedly claimed he could end the war on his first day in office.

What happens next depends on more than the two men at the podium. Any eventual agreement would require Putin's approval. Zelenskyy said the US and Ukrainian negotiating teams could meet again as early as next week to work on the remaining elements of the plan, with Donbas the question to watch.