KYIV, UKRAINE (MNN); Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on Friday that he is scheduled to meet US President Donald Trump in Florida over the weekend, as diplomatic efforts intensify to find an end to the nearly four-year Russia-Ukraine war.
Speaking to journalists, Zelenskyy said the two leaders would hold talks on Sunday focusing primarily on security guarantees for Ukraine. He revealed that a proposed 20-point framework aimed at resolving the conflict is nearly complete, stating that it is āabout 90 per cent readyā.
Zelenskyy said discussions would also include an economic agreement, though he cautioned that it was unclear whether any deal would be finalized during the meeting. He added that Ukraine would raise sensitive territorial issues, particularly Russiaās demand that Kyiv give up the remaining areas it controls in the Donbas region ā a condition Ukraine has firmly rejected.
Russia currently occupies most of Luhansk and roughly 70 per cent of Donetsk, which together make up the Donbas. Zelenskyy reiterated that Ukraine wants European countries to be involved in the peace process, though he expressed doubts about their participation at such short notice.
āWe must soon find a format in which not only Ukraine and the United States are present, but Europe is also represented,ā he said.
The upcoming meeting marks the latest step in a US-led diplomatic push to end the conflict that began on February 24, 2022. However, negotiations remain complicated due to sharply opposing positions held by Moscow and Kyiv.
Zelenskyyās remarks followed his statement on Thursday that he had held what he described as a productive discussion with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trumpās son-in-law.
Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday that Russia had already been in contact with US officials after Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev met American representatives in Florida. He confirmed that both sides had agreed to continue dialogue.
Earlier this week, Zelenskyy said he was willing to consider withdrawing Ukrainian forces from parts of the eastern industrial region as part of a peace plan, provided Russia also pulls back and the area is turned into a demilitarized zone under international monitoring. Despite claims by Russiaās foreign ministry of gradual progress in talks, Moscow has not signaled any readiness to vacate the territories it occupies.
Fighting on the ground continued unabated. In Kharkiv, Ukraineās second-largest city, two people were killed and six wounded when a guided aerial bomb struck a busy road, igniting several vehicles. In the Zaporizhzhia region, one person died and three were injured after a similar strike hit a residential house, while six others were wounded in a missile attack on the city of Uman.
Russian drone attacks overnight damaged energy and port infrastructure in Odesa and left parts of Mykolaiv without electricity.
At the same time, Ukraine said it carried out a significant strike on a Russian oil refinery in the Rostov region using British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles. Ukraineās General Staff reported multiple explosions at the Novoshakhtinsk refinery, confirming the target was successfully hit. Russian officials said a firefighter was injured while responding to the blaze.
Ukraine says such long-range strikes aim to cut Russiaās oil revenue, which finances the war effort, while Moscow continues to target Ukraineās power infrastructure in what Kyiv describes as an attempt to weaponize winter conditions against civilians.
