U.S. Officials Meet with Ukrainian Negotiators in Florida
On Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, alongside U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, engaged with top Ukrainian negotiators in Florida. This meeting is part of the efforts by the Trump administration to finalize a proposed peace plan.
This discussion follows previous conversations between U.S. and Ukrainian officials in Geneva that focused on Trump’s 28-point peace proposal.
Under the initial terms, Ukraine would have to give up part of the Donbas region, reduce its military to 600,000 personnel, prohibit NATO troops from entering its territory, and drop its aspirations to join NATO.
It appears that, according to reports, the updated proposal saw a reduction from 28 to 19 items after Ukraine and its Western European allies modified it, expressing concerns that it was too lenient towards Russia.
Rubio remarked during the meeting, “This is about ending the war in a way that creates a system and a path forward for our people to be independent and sovereign, to never have another war, and to bring tremendous prosperity to our people.”
Ukrainian diplomats were present, led by National Security Secretary Rustem Umerov, seated across from Rubio, Witkoff, and Kushner.
Umerov stated on X prior to the meeting, “We have clear instructions and priorities: to protect Ukraine’s interests, ensure substantive dialogue and move forward on the progress achieved in Geneva. We are working to ensure genuine peace and reliable long-term security for Ukraine.”
This gathering occurred in the wake of the resignation of Ukraine’s chief negotiator, Andriy Yermak, who stepped down amid an ongoing corruption investigation.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy commented, “Dialogue based on the Geneva issues will continue. Diplomacy remains active. The American side has shown a constructive approach and it is possible in the coming days to materialize measures to determine how to bring the war to a dignified end.” He added that the Ukrainian delegation has clear directives and they’re expected to align with Ukraine’s priorities.
On the other hand, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov issued a warning that the Kremlin would not accept the revised framework if the main tenets of the prior agreement were disregarded.
This week, Witkoff is also set to meet with Russian negotiators in Moscow to further discuss the latest version of the peace plan.
