Zelensky Seeks Trump’s Backing for New Ukraine Peace Plan at High-Stakes Florida Meeting

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to meet US President Donald Trump on Sunday in Florida as Kyiv pushes for Washington’s endorsement of a new proposal aimed at ending the nearly four-year war with Russia.

The meeting, scheduled to hold at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence, comes days after Russia launched a massive missile and drone attack on Kyiv, further underscoring the urgency of renewed peace efforts.

Zelensky is expected to present a 20-point peace plan that emerged from weeks of negotiations between Ukrainian and US officials. While the proposal has gained traction in Western diplomatic circles, it has not received approval from Moscow.

According to the White House, the talks will mark the first in-person meeting between both leaders since October, when Trump declined Ukraine’s request for long-range Tomahawk missiles.

Speaking during a stopover in Canada on Saturday, Zelensky said he hoped the meeting would be “very constructive,” adding that Russia’s latest assault showed President Vladimir Putin’s lack of interest in ending the war.

• The Ukrainian leader described the attack on Kyiv as Russia’s response to peace efforts
• He said the strikes reinforced concerns that Moscow was unwilling to negotiate in good faith

While in Canada, Zelensky also held a conference call with several European leaders, who reiterated their support for Ukraine’s push for peace. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said European nations remained united behind Kyiv’s diplomatic efforts.

European Union leaders Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa also pledged that EU support for Ukraine would not waver, stressing the need to maintain pressure on the Kremlin.

Russia, however, has accused Ukraine and its European allies of attempting to undermine earlier US-brokered initiatives to halt the fighting. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow would continue engaging with American negotiators but described Europe as the “main obstacle to peace.”

Trump has so far remained cautious about endorsing the new proposal, saying on Friday that no deal could move forward without his approval.

Zelensky Hopes to Discuss Russia Sanctions with Trump Thursday

The peace plan reportedly seeks to freeze the conflict along existing front lines and could involve the creation of demilitarized buffer zones. While it represents Kyiv’s clearest acknowledgment yet of potential territorial concessions, it does not include a withdrawal from parts of eastern Donetsk still under Ukrainian control.

Ending the Ukraine war has been a central promise of Trump’s second term agenda, though he has publicly admitted that resolving the conflict has proven more difficult than anticipated.

Security guarantees are expected to dominate discussions at the Florida meeting.

Zelensky has insisted that any end to the war must be accompanied by firm guarantees to prevent future Russian aggression, stressing the need for continued military and financial support from Western allies.

Meanwhile, Canada announced fresh economic assistance worth CAN$2.5 billion to support Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction.

The latest Russian attack, involving hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles, left large parts of the Kyiv region without power and heating during freezing conditions, while southern regions such as Kherson also reported electricity outages.