Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and former US President Donald Trump are scheduled to hold a crucial face-to-face meeting in Florida this weekend. The high-stakes discussions will focus on a proposed peace plan aimed at ending the nearly four-year-long war between Ukraine and Russia.
The Florida Summit and the 20-Point Plan
President Zelensky confirmed the upcoming talks to journalists, revealing that the leaders will delve into a 20-point peace plan which he described as 'about 90% ready'. The agenda for Sunday's meeting includes critical security guarantees for Ukraine and potential economic agreements. However, Zelensky tempered expectations, stating he could not confirm 'whether anything will be finalised', particularly on contentious territorial issues.
The Ukrainian leader emphasised the need for broader European involvement in the peace process, though he acknowledged it was unlikely European delegates could join this specific meeting at short notice. 'We must, without doubt, find some format in the near future in which not only Ukraine and the US are present, but Europe is represented as well,' he asserted.
Diplomatic Push and Conflicting Demands
This Florida summit represents the latest development in an extensive US-led diplomatic initiative to broker an end to the conflict. However, these efforts have consistently encountered sharply opposing demands from Moscow and Kyiv.
Zelensky's announcement followed what he termed a 'good conversation' on Thursday with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Simultaneously, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov indicated on Friday that Russian officials had already been in contact with US representatives. This contact followed a meeting in Florida over the weekend between Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev and American envoys.
On the ground, the positions remain far apart. Zelensky stated on Tuesday that he would be willing to withdraw Ukrainian troops from the country's eastern industrial heartland, but only if Moscow reciprocates and the area transforms into a demilitarised zone under international monitoring. Russia, however, has shown no indication it will agree to withdraw from seized territory. In fact, Moscow insists Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory it holds in the Donbas region—an ultimatum Kyiv has flatly rejected.
Key Sticking Points: Donbas and Zaporizhzhia
Two specific elements of the 20-point plan are anticipated to be major hurdles in the Florida discussions.
Firstly, the status of the Donbas, where Russia has captured most of Luhansk and roughly 70% of Donetsk. Zelensky explained the diplomatic tightrope, noting, 'We are in a situation where the Russians want us to leave the Donetsk region, and the Americans are trying to find a way so that it is 'not a way out'... they want to find a demilitarised zone or a free economic zone.'
Secondly, the future of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is under Russian occupation, poses another highly contentious issue. The US has proposed a solution where Ukraine and Russia would have an equal stake in managing the facility. Further difficult negotiations will be required to determine the scale of any troop pullbacks and the positioning of international forces.
While Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova remarked on Thursday about 'slow but steady progress' in peace talks, the fundamental disagreements on territory and security suggest the path to a final agreement remains fraught with difficulty.
