Zelensky's Key Goal In Meeting With Trump Revealed
- 27.12.2025, 12:13
Moscow is still a major obstacle.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky plans to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday in Florida to resolve outstanding problematic issues on a draft agreement to end all-out war with Russia.
As The Wall Street Journal, Zelensky pushed for a meeting with Trump to iron out differences over the draft 20-point agreement and other elements of the peace treaty being negotiated between the U.S. and Ukraine. Zelensky also said he would coordinate with European allies to determine the format for their participation in meetings with the U.S. on Sunday, adding that their online participation is likely.
Main Issues of Concern
The draft agreement calls for Ukraine to hold a referendum on territorial concessions as well as presidential elections.
The main stumbling blocks are the future of the remaining 20 percent of the Donetsk region controlled by Ukraine, the status of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant currently under Russian occupation, and the exact details of the security guarantees Washington will provide to Ukraine.
Kiev has resisted handing over Ukrainian territory in Donetsk, citing restrictions spelled out in its constitution. The US proposes to create a demilitarized "free economic zone" in the area. In turn, Zelensky said he was ready to consider the idea if Russia also withdraws its troops from parts of the Donetsk region it controls.
Zelensky also said that Ukraine has not received the Kremlin's reaction to the latest version of the agreement, but plans to communicate the need for increased pressure from the US if Russia resists constructive engagement.
Russia remains the main obstacle
At the same time, the WSJ notes, it remains unclear whether Russia will accept the agreement as reached between Kiev and Washington:
"One of the key goals for Ukraine and its European allies is to convince Trump that the real obstacle to peace is Russian President Vladimir Putin, not Zelensky."
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said earlier that the Kremlin and the United States had moved closer to resolving the conflict in Ukraine, but it would be inappropriate to set any deadlines. At the same time, he said that the plan being discussed between the United States and Russia was significantly different from the plan made public by Ukraine.