United States President Donald Trump met Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday at Mar-a-Lago for the peace talks.While posing with Zelenskyy outside the Florida house, Trump again bosted about ending eight wars and said that Russia and Ukraine have to make deal. “Yes, I do (believe that Russian President Vladimir Putin is serious about peace this time). I think he is. I think they both are…They have to make a deal…Too many people died and both Presidents want to make a deal…I’ve settled eight wars and this is the most difficult one…We are going to have a great meeting today and this gentleman has worked very hard and he and his people are very brave…I am also calling President Putin back after the meeting, and we will continue the negotiations...” Trump said. Just hours before his meeting with US President Donald Trump at the latter’s Florida club, Zelenskyy briefed UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on their “detailed phone call” and updated him on preparations for the Trump meeting. Earlier, Trump held what he described as a “productive” phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of the Florida talks.Zelenskyy informed Starmer about the frontline situation and the latest Russian strikes.“We discussed preparations for the meeting with President Trump, as well as all our contacts with European partners,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “I informed him on the situation on the frontline and on the consequences of Russian strikes.”
Here are the top developments on Trump-Zelenskyy meet –
- Trump met Zelenskyy in Florida for the peace talks and said, “Yes, I do (believe that Russian President Vladimir Putin is serious about peace this time). I think he is. I think they both are…They have to make a deal…Too many people died and both Presidents want to make a deal…I’ve settled eight wars and this is the most difficult one…We are going to have a great meeting today and this gentleman has worked very hard and he and his people are very brave…I am also calling President Putin back after the meeting, and we will continue the negotiations…”
- Trump said, “We’re in the final stages of talking. We’re going to see. Otherwise, it’s going to go on for a long time. It’ll either end, or it’s going to go on for a long time, and millions of additional people are going to be killed and nobody wants that”
- “It’ll either end, or it will go on for a LONG time!”: President Trump
- President Donald Trump was flanked by various administration officials and allies as the US and Ukrainian delegations sat down for talks at Mar-a-Lago. In attendance were Trump’s foreign envoy Steve Witkoff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine, White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stepiller, hen MWhite House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and Josh Gruenbaum, commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service at the General Services Administration, who was present at talks with Russian officials last week.
- After meeting with Ukrainian President, Trump said, “We had a terrific meeting. We discussed a lot of things. As you know, I had an excellent phone call with President Putin. It lasted for over two hours. We discussed a lot of points. I do think we’re getting a lot closer, maybe very close. The President and I just spoke to the European leaders…We have made a lot of progress on ending that war, which is probably the deadliest war since World War II…”
- The Ukrainian president said, “
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says, “…We had great discussions on all the topics, and we appreciate the progress that the Americans and Ukrainian teams made in these recent weeks…We discussed all the aspects of the peace framework…There has been 90 per cent agreement on the 20-point peace plan, 100 per cent agreement on US-Ukraine security guarantees, and U.S.-Europe-Ukraine security guarantees are almost agreed. Military dimension 100 per cent agreed. The Prosperity Plan is being finalised and we also discussed the sequencing of the following actions. We agreed that security guarantees are a key milestone in achieving lasting peace and our teams will continue working on all aspects…Ukraine is ready for peace…” - US President Trump said that Ukraine and Russia are getting “closer” to settling the status of the disputed Donbas territory, but it remains challenging. “It’s unresolved, but it’s getting a lot closer. That’s a very tough issue, but one that I think will get resolved,” Trump told reporters in response to a question about the Donbas, in a joint appearance at his Mar-a-Lago estate with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
- Trump: If things don’t happen, they keep fighting and they keep dying. Zelenskyy does not want that to happen, we don’t want that to happen, Putin does not want it to happen.
- A Downing Street spokesperson said UK PM Starmer reaffirmed unwavering support for Ukraine and its commitment to achieving a just and lasting peace
- Meanwhile, Trump’s call with Putin came as part of what is being viewed as an effort to negotiate a possible peace deal between Kyiv and Moscow. However, the Kremlin said the US and Russia agreed that a ceasefire “would only prolong the conflict.”
- “I just had a very good and productive telephone call with President Putin of Russia” before the planned talks with Zelenskyy at Trump’s Florida estate at 1:00pm local time (1800 GMT), the US president said on Truth Social.
- EU chiefs Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa also reaffirmed that the
European Union ’s support for Ukraine “would not falter” ahead of the Florida meeting. They joined a call with Zelenskyy and several European leaders on Saturday.
- Zelenskyy also met Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in Halifax the same day.
- Earlier, Zelenskyy said the coming days could be decisive for efforts to end the war, even as Russia intensified missile and drone attacks across Ukraine amid heightened diplomatic activity.
- The Florida talks will feature Zelenskyy’s “20-point peace deal proposal,” which he said is “about 90% ready.”
- His spokesperson added that Trump and Zelenskyy will call European leaders after their meeting.
While Ukraine is pushing for concrete decisions, Zelenskyy noted that outcomes would depend heavily on international partners supporting Kyiv and maintaining pressure on Moscow.Highlighting the scale of recent Russian strikes, Zelenskyy said: “This week alone, they launched over 2,100 attack drones, around 800 guided aerial bombs, and 94 missiles of various types,” targeting civilians and critical infrastructure, especially energy systems.He said Ukrainian emergency and energy teams were working around the clock to mitigate the impact.“Our repair crews, energy workers, and first responders of Ukraine’s State Emergency Service are working literally 24/7 to protect lives and restore power supply,” Zelenskyy said.
