KEY POINTS
- Trump said the US is “very close” to securing a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.
- The White House reported “tremendous progress” but said further talks are needed.
- Ukraine and the US reached a “common understanding” in Geneva.
- President Zelensky hopes to visit Washington to finalise the deal.
- Senior US and Russian officials met in Abu Dhabi to finalise a deal.
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Washington was “very close” to striking a deal with Russia and Ukraine to end their nearly four-year war, as American, Ukrainian and Russian officials pursued talks in Geneva and Abu Dhabi.
“We’re going to get there,” Trump said at a pre-Thanksgiving event at the White House. “So I think we’re getting very close to a deal.”
White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said further talks were needed among the three sides. She said the United States had made “tremendous progress” in recent days but acknowledged that “a few delicate, but not insurmountable, details” remained unresolved.
Ukraine signals progress
Ukraine had agreed to the US proposal with only “minor details” outstanding, CNN reported, citing a US official. However, President Volodymyr Zelensky said more work is needed to be done.
Rustem Umerov, Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, said Ukrainian and US officials reached a “common understanding” on the main elements of the framework during talks in Geneva.
He said Zelensky hoped to visit Washington “at the earliest suitable date in November” to “complete final steps and make a deal with President Trump.”
Umerov described the Geneva discussions as “productive and constructive.”
Zelensky told French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Tuesday that there were “many prospects that can make the path to peace real.”
He said the Geneva meeting produced “solid results” but said key issues still needed to be finalised at the presidential level.
Revised US peace plan
US and European officials revised the original 28-point draft plan after criticism. The US plan included limits on Ukraine’s military, the abandonment of NATO ambitions, and the effective ceding of Donetsk and Lugansk.
Macron said the talks were at a “crucial juncture.” He urged the need for “robust security guarantees” for Kyiv, not “paper guarantees.”
Speaking at a virtual “coalition of the willing” meeting, Macron said negotiations had gained “new impetus” and that there was “finally a chance to make real progress towards a good peace.”
Macron later told RTL radio that European-led security guarantees would include Turkish, British and French troops.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer told Parliament that the revised plan under discussion “doesn’t cover the question of territory.”
US and Russian officials hold talks in Abu Dhabi
Senior US and Russian officials met in Abu Dhabi on Monday and Tuesday as part of Washington’s intensified diplomatic push, according to ABC News and the Financial Times.
US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll held meetings with a Russian delegation, with further discussions continuing on Tuesday.
Driscoll’s spokesperson confirmed to Reuters that the meetings were part of efforts driven by the Trump administration to secure a negotiated settlement.
The Financial Times reported that Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine’s military intelligence, was expected to attend the Abu Dhabi talks.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to confirm Russia’s involvement, telling state media: “I have nothing to say. We are following the media reports.”
CNN reported that Driscoll’s meetings took place with the approval of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Cautious optimism about deal
Macron warned against a settlement that would amount to “capitulation” for Ukraine. He said some terms discussed in recent weeks “may be acceptable for the Russians” but “not for the Ukrainians and the Europeans.”
Finland’s President Alexander Stubb said the coming days would be “decisive,” noting that Europe must remain involved. He said, “The future of Ukraine is for Ukraine to decide, and European security is for Europe to decide.”
Despite the diplomatic efforts, fighting escalated overnight. Zelensky said Russia launched 22 missiles and 460 drones into Ukraine, targeting energy facilities and infrastructure “that keeps normal life going.”
Russia’s Defence Ministry said three people were killed and eight injured in a Ukrainian drone attack in the Rostov region.
It claimed its forces intercepted 249 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 116 launched over the Black Sea.
Robert Brovdi, commander of a Ukrainian drone unit, called the assault Kyiv’s “most productive” night in November, saying Ukrainian drones inflicted “deep damage” on Russian targets.
