Zelenskyy says Kyiv ready to move forward with peace plan and is prepared to discuss its ‘sensitive points’ with Trump and allies
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that Kyiv was ready to move forward with a US-backed peace deal, and that he was prepared to discuss its sensitive points with US president Donald Trump in talks he said should include European allies.
In a speech to the ‘coalition of the willing’, a copy of which was seen by Reuters, Zelenskyy urged European leaders to hash out a framework for deploying a “reassurance force” to Ukraine and to continue supporting Kyiv for as long as Moscow shows no willingness to end its war.
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Summary of the day so far
It is approaching 1pm in Washington DC, 8pm in Kyiv and 9pm in Moscow. Here is a summary of today’s main developments so far, as reported on the blog:
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that Kyiv was ready to move forward with a US-backed peace deal, and that he was prepared to discuss its sensitive points with US president Donald Trump in talks he said should include European allies. In a speech to the ‘coalition of the willing’, a copy of which was seen by Reuters, Zelenskyy urged European leaders to hash out a framework for deploying a “reassurance force” to Ukraine and to continue supporting Kyiv for as long as Moscow shows no willingness to end its war.
Trump on Tuesday said he thought a deal on the war in Ukraine was getting very close but gave no other details, telling a White House event: “We’re going to get there.”
Axios reported that Zelenskyy had expressed a desire to meet Trump “as soon as possible” – possibly over Thanksgiving – to complete a joint US-Ukrainian agreement on the terms for ending the war. It cited the infomation as coming from Zelenskyy’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak.
The ‘coalition of the willing’ call on Tuesday, co-hosted by UK prime minister Keir Starmer, was attended by US secretary of state Marco Rubio, in a rare example of American involvement in the coalition’s discussions. French president Emmanuel Macron and Nato secretary general Mark Rutte were also among the participants in the virtual meeting.
Macron told Tuesday’s ‘coalition of the willing’ call that efforts to draw the Russia-Ukraine conflict to an end were now at a “crucial juncture”. During the same call, Starmer said talks on a potential ceasefire in Ukraine were “moving in a positive direction” but urged leaders of the coalition to “firm up” their commitments to a potential peacekeeping operation in Ukraine.
Earlier on Tuesday, Starmer dismissed reports from the US media that Ukraine had agreed to the US peace proposal. The UK prime minister’s official spokesperson told the PA news agency: “We welcome the progress made, but there are still several points to work through.”
The United States has made “tremendous progress” toward a peace deal with Ukraine and Russia, but some sensitive details will require additional talks, the White House said on Tuesday. “There are a few delicate, but not insurmountable, details that must be sorted out and will require further talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the United States,” White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said.
Talks between US army secretary Dan Driscoll and Russia delegates on a US plan to end the conflict with Ukraine were “going well,” his spokesperson said on Tuesday. Driscoll reportedly met Russian and Ukrainian officials for talks in Abu Dhabi today.
Russia launched a massive missile and drone attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure overnight, killing seven and injuring 21 in Kyiv. A total of 22 missiles, including four hypersonic Kinzhals, and 464 drones, were fired by Russia in attacks that principally targeted Kyiv and the surrounding area, according to Zelenskyy.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director general Rafael Grossi said on Tuesday the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant will need a “special status” and a cooperation agreement between Russia and Ukraine if a peace deal is reached. Grossi said in an interview: “Until the war stops or there is a ceasefire or the guns are silenced, there is always a possibility of something going very, very wrong.”
French president Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that France will complete, with other European Union countries, a solution for providing financial support to Ukraine as he referred to frozen Russian assets, reports Reuters.
Macron, who was speaking after a virtual meeting of the ‘coalition of the willing’, said Ukraine needed a peace that was “serious” and “respecful of international law”.
Share‘We’re going to get there’: Trump says getting close to deal on war in Ukraine
US president Donald Trump on Tuesday said he thought a deal on the war in Ukraine was getting very close but gave no other details, telling a White House event:
We’re going to get there.
A Ukrainian official earlier signaled support for the framework of a peace agreement with Russia, with some sensitive issues still needing to be fixed.
ShareZelenskyy says Kyiv ready to move forward with peace plan and is prepared to discuss its ‘sensitive points’ with Trump and allies
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that Kyiv was ready to move forward with a US-backed peace deal, and that he was prepared to discuss its sensitive points with US president Donald Trump in talks he said should include European allies.
In a speech to the ‘coalition of the willing’, a copy of which was seen by Reuters, Zelenskyy urged European leaders to hash out a framework for deploying a “reassurance force” to Ukraine and to continue supporting Kyiv for as long as Moscow shows no willingness to end its war.
Axios reports that Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed a desire to meet US president Donald Trump “as soon as possible” – possibly over Thanksgiving – to complete a joint US-Ukrainian agreement on the terms for ending the war. It cites the infomation as coming from Zelenskyy’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak.
Yermak told Axios in an interview over Zoom on Tuesday morning:
I hope the visit of President Zelensky will take place as soon as possible, because … it will be help President Trump to continue his historical mission to end this war.
It is believed that Trump will leave Washington on Tuesday evening and will stay at Mar-a-Lago for Thanksgiving.
Updated at 12.46 EST
Shaun Walker
Earlier this week, Shaun Walker spoke to former Lithuanian foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, who expressed frustration that European countries have not been more proactive in the Ukraine peace talks.
Landsbergis said:
It feels like the only plan that we had for engaging with the United States is to remain within Trump’s good graces, rather than to have our own plan that we would try to sell to Trump and that we would be able to back with our own resources, own political will and ability to act upon it.
Lithuanian foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis has expressed frustration that European countries have not been more proactive in the Ukraine peace talks. Photograph: Yves Herman/Reuters
Of the European “counter-plan”, which was announced soon after a US 28-point plan that seemed skewed heavily towards Russia’s demands, was made public, Landsbergis said:
I think Trump can really understand that we were not serious … So that’s why there is no respect. That’s why secretary Rubio said what he said about the European proposal for the peace plan. He said basically, ‘I have not read it’. Imagine what a slap in the face it is for Europe. We are preparing a plan, and the people discussing our continent’s future have not even read it.
He also said he believes the Trump administration has made a strategic decision to disengage from Europe, and focus on the Indo-Pacific, making attempts by European leaders to “court” the US president with gifts or flattery largely futile:
They basically just want to disengage. And no amount of kilograms of gold is going to change that strategy. You might get some nicer words, some good pictures, something to bring back home where you say, ‘Look, we’re in a better position.’ We’re not. This is self-deception.
The ‘coalition of the willing’ call on Tuesday, which also heard from Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, was attended by US secretary of state Marco Rubio, in a rare example of American involvement in the coalition’s discussions, reports the PA news agency.
Nato secretary general Mark Rutte also participated in the virtual meeting, said Nato’s press office.
Ukraine has not yet fully agreed to a peace proposal from the US, Downing Street suggested, amid suggestions from the US that Kyiv had done so (see 1.34pm GMT).
The UK prime minister’s official spokesperson told the PA news agency:
I’ve seen those reports, but our position hasn’t changed.
We welcome the progress made, but there are still several points to work through. We are all resolute in our focus on securing Ukraine a just and lasting peace.
The spokesperson also pointed to Starmer’s statement to the House of Commons on Tuesday, in which he said there is still a “tough road ahead” to reach peace.
Updated at 12.29 EST
Speaking from Paris, Emmanuel Macron told Tuesday’s ‘coalition of the willing’ call that efforts to draw the Russia-Ukraine conflict to an end are now at a “crucial juncture”.
The French president added:
Negotiations are getting a new impetus, and we should seize this momentum not because there is reason for alarm – Ukraine is solid, Russia is slow, and Europe is steadfast – but because there is finally a chance to make real progress toward a good peace.
Ukraine needs “a set of very robust security guarantees, and not paper guarantees” he also said, as previous promises were “shattered by successive Russian aggressions”.
French president Emmanuel Macron during the video meeting of the ‘coalition of the willing’, at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris on Tuesday. Photograph: Christian Liewig-pool/SIPA/ShutterstockShare
Updated at 11.57 EST
Keir Starmer urged leaders of the ‘coalition of the willing’ to “firm up” their commitments to a potential peacekeeping operation in Ukraine.
The UK prime minister told a virtual meeting of the coalition that the “multinational force Ukraine” would play “a vital part” in guaranteeing the country’s security. He said:
I urge colleagues on the call this afternoon to firm up their national commitments, because we need to ensure we have got the most robust capability, the most robust plans, on the table. And we will also pick up next steps with the US military on their own planning.
And we must come back to this with a strong political guarantee to show Russia we’re serious about responding to any violation.
Adding that the UK would send more air defence missiles to Ukraine in the coming weeks, Starme also called for a “full embargo of Russian energy” to keep up the pressure on Moscow, saying recent measures had already had an impact.
ShareUkraine talks ‘moving in positive direction’ in allied meeting, UK PM says
Keir Starmer has said talks on a potential ceasefire in Ukraine were “moving in a positive direction” as he spoke to leaders of Ukraine’s allies on Tuesday.
The UK prime minister led a call with leaders of the ‘coalition of the willing’ this afternoon after talks between Ukraine and the US in Geneva over the weekend appeared to bear fruit for a path to peace.
Addressing a virtual meeting of the coalition from the cabinet room in 10 Downing Street, Starner said of the latest talks:
Progress was made and I welcome some of the developments that have now come forward.
It was a chance to ensure that the draft plan fully reflects Ukraine’s interests and lays the ground for a lasting peace.
He added that Ukraine had “proposed some constructive changes”, supported by European national security advisers.
According to the PA news agency, the prime minister said:
I do think we are moving in a positive direction and indications today that in large part most of the text, Volodymyr [Zelenskyy] is indicating, can be accepted.
UK prime minister Keir Starmer sits with foreign secretary Yvette Cooper, defence secretary John Healey and chief of the defence staff Richard Knighton, while other participants attend by video link, as Starmer co-chairs the ‘coalition of the willing’ meeting at 10 Downing Street. Photograph: Toby Melville/ReutersShareUS army secretary’s talks with Russia on Ukraine ‘going well’, says spokesman
Talks between US army secretary Dan Driscoll and Russia delegates on a US plan to end the conflict with Ukraine are “going well,” his spokesperson said on Tuesday, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Lt Col Jeff Tolbert, Driscoll’s spokesperson, gave this update:
Late Monday and throughout Tuesday, secretary Driscoll and team have been in discussions with the Russian delegation to achieve a lasting peace in Ukraine.
The talks are going well and we remain optimistic.
Share‘Tremendous progress’ made says White House, but adds that delicate details on Ukraine peace plan require more talks
The United States has made “tremendous progress” toward a peace deal with Ukraine and Russia, but some sensitive details will require additional talks, the White House said on Tuesday.
“There are a few delicate, but not insurmountable, details that must be sorted out and will require further talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the United States,” White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in an X post.
Updated at 10.20 EST