U.S. and Russian Officials Hold Fresh Ukraine Talks in Florida

Reuters

Emergency responders work at the site of a warehouse that was struck during a night of Russian missile and drone strikes outside Kyiv, Ukraine, 6 December 2025.

Senior United States negotiators met Russian officials in Florida on Saturday in the latest round of talks aimed at ending Russia’s war in Ukraine, as President Donald Trump’s administration seeks to broker an agreement between the two sides.

The meeting in Miami followed discussions on Friday between U.S. officials and Ukrainian and European counterparts, as part of ongoing efforts to develop a peace framework for the conflict that began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Kirill Dmitriev, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy, said the talks with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, were constructive and would continue on Sunday. A White House official confirmed that Saturday’s session had concluded.

“The discussions are proceeding constructively. They began earlier today and will continue tomorrow,” Dmitriev told reporters.

U.S. Secretary of State and National Security Adviser Marco Rubio had previously indicated that he may also participate in the talks.

Earlier this week, U.S., Ukrainian and European officials reported progress on potential security guarantees for Kyiv as part of efforts to end the war, although it remains unclear whether such proposals would be acceptable to Moscow.

In Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday that Ukraine would support a U.S. proposal for trilateral talks involving Washington, Kyiv and Moscow, provided they facilitate further prisoner exchanges and open the way for meetings between national leaders.

“America is proposing a trilateral meeting at the level of national security advisers — the United States, Ukraine and Russia,” Zelenskiy told local journalists.

However, U.S. intelligence assessments continue to warn that President Putin remains intent on seizing all of Ukraine, according to sources familiar with the reports, contradicting suggestions from some U.S. officials that Moscow is prepared to compromise.

At his annual press conference in Moscow, Putin reiterated that Russia’s conditions for ending the war remain unchanged since June 2024, including demands that Ukraine abandon its NATO aspirations and withdraw from four regions claimed by Russia. Kyiv has rejected any territorial concessions, particularly in areas not fully occupied by Russian forces.

Ukraine’s chief negotiator, Rustem Umerov, said U.S. and European delegations held talks on Friday and agreed to continue coordinated efforts.

“We agreed with our American partners on further steps and on continuing our joint work in the near future,” Umerov said in a post on Telegram, adding that President Zelenskiy had been briefed on the discussions.

The White House did not immediately comment on the talks. Speaking on Friday, Rubio said progress had been made but cautioned that significant challenges remain.

“The role we're trying to play is a role of figuring out whether there's any overlap here that they can agree to, and that's what we've invested a lot of time and energy and continue to do so. That may not be possible. I hope it is. I hope it can get done this month before the end of the year,” he said. 

Source: Reuters



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