President Donald Trump has dispatched top negotiators for additional high-level meetings with both Russia and Ukraine, but stated he would only be willing to meet with the leaders of those countries if the talks yield a so-far elusive pact to end the war.
In a social media post on Tuesday, Trump confirmed the move, stating that the original “28-Point Peace Plan” drafted by the US has been “fine-tuned” with input from both sides. He claimed that there are now “only a few remaining points of disagreement” and that “tremendous progress” was made over the past week.
Negotiation Tactics and Conditions
President Trump made his condition for personal involvement clear:
“I look forward to hopefully meeting with President Zelenskyy and President Putin soon, but ONLY when the deal to end this War is FINAL or, in its final stages.”
Trump directed Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Meanwhile, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, who has been meeting with Russians in Abu Dhabi, was ordered to talk with the Ukrainians.
Progress and International Doubts
The President’s optimism about a breakthrough comes amid international doubts about the prospect of a lasting deal, given the fundamental conflict between the two sides. As former US Ambassador to Ukraine John Herbst noted, “Trump’s objective remains a durable peace. Putin’s objective remains political control of Ukraine.”
- Initial Pitfall: An earlier 28-point proposal floated by the White House drew the ire of Ukrainians and Europeans, as it included demands that Kyiv drop its ambition to join NATO and surrender territory in the eastern Donbas regions.
- Revised Plan: That blueprint has now been narrowed to a new list of 19 proposals discussed in Geneva on Sunday.
- Ukraine’s Position: Ukrainian officials, including Rustem Umerov, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, said US and Ukrainian delegations “reached a common understanding on the core terms of the agreement discussed in Geneva.” President Volodymyr Zelenskiy acknowledged the US efforts but appeared to rebut suggestions that Kyiv had fully signed off on a potential deal. Ihor Brusylo, the deputy chief of Zelenskiy’s office, stated that discussions involving territorial issues—the core of any settlement—must be addressed at a meeting between the Ukrainian and US presidents.
- Russia’s Position: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov signalled that any deviations from the understandings reached during Trump’s summit with Putin in Anchorage earlier this year would be a hard sell for the Kremlin. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov had “nothing to report” on the talks in Abu Dhabi.
European Allies Consulted
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio joined a call with Ukrainian, German, UK, and French leaders, signaling that he is acting as Trump’s bridge to European allies regarding the latest peace talks. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer relayed that Ukraine has proposed “constructive changes” and that Zelenskiy indicated the majority of the text “could be accepted.”
Amid the high-level negotiations, Russia and Ukraine continued to exchange fire overnight, with heavy air raids on Kyiv and assaults on southern Russian areas.