Washington, D.C. – December 8, 2025
President Donald Trump expressed sharp disappointment in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday, claiming the Ukrainian leader “isn’t ready” to endorse a U.S.-drafted peace proposal designed to end Russia’s nearly four-year invasion of Ukraine. Speaking to reporters before attending the Kennedy Center Honors, Trump suggested Zelenskyy was personally holding up progress despite positive feedback from the Ukrainian negotiating team.
“I’m a little bit disappointed that President Zelenskyy hasn’t yet read the proposal, that was as of a few hours ago. His people love it, but he hasn’t,” Trump said. He added, “Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I’m not sure that Zelenskyy’s fine with it. His people love it. But he isn’t ready.”
The remarks followed three days of intensive U.S.-Ukrainian talks that concluded Saturday in Hallandale Beach, Florida. The discussions, described by both sides as productive and constructive, aimed to narrow differences on the evolving American peace framework. Although no final agreement was reached, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized that the talks went beyond ceasefire terms to include postwar reconstruction and economic recovery plans for Ukraine.
Zelenskyy confirmed he received a detailed phone briefing from the negotiators and reiterated Kyiv’s commitment to working in good faith toward a genuine and lasting peace.
The U.S. proposal, which has been revised several times since a draft leaked in November, reportedly includes territorial concessions in the Russian-occupied Donbas region, limits on the future size of Ukraine’s armed forces, and a commitment to neutrality that would rule out NATO membership. In exchange, Ukraine would receive security guarantees from the United States and its allies. A separate focus is the fate of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Europe’s largest, which has been under Russian control since early 2022 and requires stable electricity to prevent a catastrophic meltdown.
Outgoing U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg, speaking Saturday at the Reagan National Defense Forum in California, described the negotiations as entering “the last 10 meters,” with the main remaining obstacles being the status of Donbas and arrangements for the Zaporizhzhia plant.
Trump has maintained a complicated relationship with Zelenskyy since returning to the White House, repeatedly describing the war as a wasteful drain on American resources and urging Ukraine to cede territory to achieve a quick settlement. Russian President Vladimir Putin has not publicly endorsed the current U.S. plan and last week called several of its elements unworkable.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin on Sunday welcomed the Trump administration’s new National Security Strategy, released Friday, praising its emphasis on dialogue and ending confrontation. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia’s TASS news agency that the document aligns with Moscow’s vision and expressed hope for constructive cooperation on the Ukrainian settlement.
The diplomatic maneuvering unfolded against a grim backdrop on the ground. Russian missile, drone, and artillery attacks overnight Saturday and throughout Sunday killed at least four civilians and caused widespread power and water outages. A drone strike in northern Chernihiv region claimed one life, while a combined assault on infrastructure in the central industrial city of Kremenchuk knocked out electricity and running water for thousands. In eastern Kharkiv region, shelling killed three people and wounded ten others.
Ukrainian and Western officials accuse Russia of deliberately targeting the country’s power grid for the fourth consecutive winter in an attempt to break civilian morale by weaponizing the cold.
On Monday, Zelenskyy is scheduled to meet in London with the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, and Germany to discuss the latest U.S. proposals and coordinate European support, including potential security guarantees and contingency plans for any future ceasefire.
As winter tightens its grip and the human cost continues to mount, the gap between diplomatic rhetoric and battlefield reality remains stark. With Trump pushing for a rapid resolution and European allies insisting on robust guarantees for Kyiv, the path to ending Europe’s largest conflict since World War II appears as uncertain as ever.
