Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to meet United States President Donald Trump in Florida on Sunday, 28th December, 2025 as diplomatic efforts intensify to bring an end to Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine.
The meeting comes amid continued fighting, with Russia sustaining its attacks on Ukraine, over the weekend. Ukraine’s air force warned that drone and missile threats remained in force across the entire country, underscoring the fragile security situation even as peace talks gain momentum.
Moscow currently controls about 75 per cent of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region and nearly 99 per cent of neighbouring Luhansk, according to Ukrainian officials. The territorial reality on the ground has remained a major sticking point in negotiations aimed at ending the conflict.
Zelensky last met President Trump in October during a visit to the White House. Since then, Kyiv has been pushing to secure firm security guarantees from Washington as part of any eventual peace agreement. The Ukrainian leader has floated the idea of establishing a demilitarised “free economic zone” in parts of the Donbas region that Russian forces have failed to capture by force.
On Friday, Zelensky told reporters that a proposed 20-point peace plan was close to completion. “Our task is to make sure everything is 100 per cent ready,” he said, adding that discussions were progressing rapidly.
In a post on social media, Zelensky said the planned meeting with Trump could be decisive. “We are not losing a single day. We have agreed on a meeting at the highest level – with President Trump in the near future. A lot can be decided before the new year,” he wrote.
However, President Trump has struck a more assertive tone regarding the negotiations. In an interview with Politico published on Friday, he said Zelensky “doesn’t have anything until I approve it,” signalling that U.S backing remains central to any final agreement.
Meanwhile, Trump has expressed optimism about the talks, saying he is expecting progress with both the Russian and Ukrainian leaders.
“I think it’s going to go good with him (Zelensky). I think it’s going to go good with (Vladimir) Putin,” Trump shared, adding that he expects to speak with the Russian leader “soon,
The outcome of Sunday’s meeting is expected to shape the next phase of diplomatic efforts, as global attention remains fixed on whether the war, now in its prolonged and devastating phase, can be brought to an end through negotiation.
