Overview
- The Mar-a-Lago meeting ended without concrete, verifiable agreements, though both leaders described the discussions as constructive and said a decision could come within weeks or not at all.
- The core impasse remains Russia’s demand for Ukrainian territorial concessions in the Donbas, including areas around Donetsk not under Russian control, which Kyiv rejects.
- Zelenskyy said security guarantees were fully agreed while Trump put agreement at 95 percent, with Europe expected to shoulder a major role and a U.S. offer discussed around a 15-year term that Ukraine wants extended.
- Talks are anchored in a revised 20-point Ukrainian plan derived from a U.S. proposal, with ideas under review such as freezing the current front and creating a demilitarized buffer zone, and Zelenskyy has floated a national referendum on any territorial step.
- Follow-up working groups will convene in early January alongside European coordination, including a planned Paris session of the “coalition of the willing,” as Russia stays outside the talks and signals no shift from maximal demands.