Trump Says Zelensky ‘Isn’t Ready’ to Approve US Peace Proposal, Claims Kyiv Holding Up Progress

President Donald Trump on Sunday suggested that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is delaying progress on a US-authored peace proposal aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war, saying the Ukrainian leader has not yet fully reviewed the plan.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the Kennedy Center Honors, Trump said he was “a little bit disappointed” that Zelensky had not read the proposal as of “a few hours ago.” According to Trump, Ukrainian negotiators “love it,” and Russia is “fine with it,” but Zelensky “isn’t ready.”

The remarks came after US and Ukrainian officials concluded three days of negotiations in Florida to narrow differences on Washington’s proposal. Trump’s comments appeared to place responsibility for the slowdown on Kyiv.

However, Russian President Vladimir Putin has not endorsed the plan publicly. In fact, he sharply criticized portions of the draft last week, calling some terms “unworkable,” even though the proposal was widely seen as favorable to Moscow.

Trump’s relationship with Zelensky has remained strained during his second term, with the US president frequently arguing that the war is too expensive for American taxpayers and urging Ukraine to consider ceding territory to Russia to secure peace.

ZELENSKY SAYS UKRAINE STILL ENGAGED
Zelensky on Saturday said he held a “substantive phone call” with American officials involved in the Florida talks and affirmed Kyiv’s commitment to negotiating sincerely.

“Ukraine is determined to keep working in good faith with the American side to genuinely achieve peace,” he said on social media.

KREMLIN PRAISES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S NEW SECURITY STRATEGY
As Trump criticized Zelensky, the Kremlin reacted positively to Washington’s newly released national security strategy. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia’s state-run Tass agency that the updated document aligns closely with Moscow’s own worldview.

“There are statements there against confrontation and in favor of dialogue and building good relations,” he said, expressing hope that it would lead to “further constructive cooperation” on resolving the war.

The White House strategy identifies ending the conflict as central to restoring “strategic stability” between Washington and Moscow.

‘LAST 10 METERS’ OF NEGOTIATIONS
Trump’s outgoing Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, said on Saturday that diplomatic efforts were in “the last 10 meters,” pointing to two unresolved issues: territorial questions involving the Donbas region and control of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

Russia currently occupies most of Donbas—which includes Donetsk and Luhansk—and illegally annexed the region along with parts of southern Ukraine three years ago. The Zaporizhzhia plant, also under Russian control, remains offline and reliant on stable power to prevent nuclear risks.

Kellogg, who leaves his position in January, did not participate in the Florida negotiations.

LEADERS OF UK, FRANCE, GERMANY TO MEET ZELENSKY
Officials said the leaders of the UK, France and Germany plan to meet Zelensky in London on Monday as diplomacy intensifies.

Meanwhile, Russia continued its assaults across Ukraine over the weekend. A drone strike in the Chernihiv region killed one man Saturday night. A combined missile-and-drone attack on Kremenchuk, an industrial hub home to one of Ukraine’s largest oil refineries, knocked out power and water supplies.

On Sunday, shelling by Russian forces in the Kharkiv region killed three people and wounded 10 others, local prosecutors said.

Kyiv and its Western partners accuse Moscow of trying to inflict widespread suffering by targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, a winter tactic officials describe as “weaponizing the cold.”