US-Ukraine talks begin in Florida discussed plan to end war
Ukrainian negotiators hold talks in the United States on Sunday about Washington’s plan to end the war with Russia, as pressure mounts on Kyiv militarily and politically.
The meetings came as Moscow intensified its nightly strikes on the Ukrainian capital and its environs for two consecutive nights, and with an internal political jolt after President Volodymyr Zelensky sacked his chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, following a wide-ranging corruption investigation.
The meeting between Ukrainian negotiators led by National Security Council Secretary Rustam Umarov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio began in Florida on Sunday, who was accompanied by Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.
Rubio said at the start of the meeting that the talks aren’t just about peace agreements… It’s about setting a path for the future that ensures Ukraine remains sovereign, independent and prosperous.
“We’re discussing the future and security of Ukraine, preventing the recurrence of aggression against it and its prosperity, and how to rebuild it,” Umarov said.
Washington has presented a plan to end the conflict, which began more than three years ago, and is seeking to finalize it with the consent of Moscow and Kiev.
The first version of the 28-point proposal, which was drafted without any intervention from Ukraine’s European allies, stipulated the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from the Donetsk region and the de facto recognition of the Donetsk, Crimea, and Lugansk regions by the United States as Russian.
The United States amended the original draft after criticism from Kiev and Europe, but the current wording remains unclear.
The French presidency announced that President Emmanuel Macron will hold talks with Zelensky in Paris on Monday.
Hours before the Ukrainian delegation was due to leave, operations at one of Russia’s largest oil ports were halted on Saturday after an attack by drones.
The Caspian Pipeline Consortium, which includes major US oil companies ExxonMobil and Chevron and owns the facility, called the strike a “terrorist attack”.
The Caspian Sea Pipeline Consortium’s pipeline, which starts in Kazakhstan and ends at the target port, is key to transporting oil from Kazakhstan and is among the world’s largest, managing about 1% of the world’s oil supply.
But two Ukrainian sources claimed responsibility for an attack on two Black Sea oil tankers suspected of being part of Russia’s stealth fleet used by Moscow to circumvent Western sanctions.
Explosions rocked the empty tankers Ferrat and Kairos off the northern Turkish coast on Friday.
