Trump says deal to end Ukraine war is much closer

US President Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump said significant progress had been made in talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on a potential peace agreement, following their meeting on Sunday at the Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.

The meeting came a day after a Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv and capped intensive diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the largest land war in Europe in eight decades.

Trump said, according to the Financial Times, that a deal to end the war in Ukraine was now much closer. Zelenskiy said the two leaders had discussed all aspects of a 20-point peace plan and had made substantial progress toward reaching an agreement.

Zelenskiy said security guarantees between the United States and Ukraine were “100 per cent agreed,” but did not provide further details.

Trump said he was willing to address the Ukrainian parliament if it would help cement the agreement and envisaged holding a trilateral meeting with Zelenskiy and Russian President Vladimir Putin at an appropriate time.

Despite praising each other at a joint news conference after the talks, Trump and Zelenskiy offered few specifics on which elements had seen progress.