When the new negotiating team from Kiev arrived to meet with senior White House officials, Miami showed an unfamiliar side: it was raining. “The sky clearly shows that the weather is fine completely unpredictable. As a meteorologist would say: weather forecasting is inherently difficult because the atmosphere is a chaotic system in which small changes can have huge effects,” said Serhiy Kyslytsia, first deputy foreign minister of Ukraine, on Sunday.
For now, this was the Ukrainians' last chance to influence the basic assumptions of the new peace plan. On Monday, Donald Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, together with Jared Kushner, the US president's son-in-law, will go to Moscow. They're there on Tuesday meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Expectations are high. “We are now entering a decisive week.” – German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on Sunday evening.
Trump phrases it more carefully. Initially, the Republican gave Volodymyr Zelensky a deadline of Thanksgiving last Thursday to agree to the peace plan. There seems to be no rush these days. “I don't have a deadline” — this is how Trump commented on the talks in Florida on Sunday. At the same time, he showed optimism again. In his opinion, there is a “real chance of reaching an agreement”.
The coming days will show whether this will be achieved after intensive negotiations lasting 10 days compromise between Kiev and Moscow. However, even before Trump's negotiator Witkoff arrived, Putin repeated his point maximum requestswhich are unacceptable to Ukrainians. “If Ukrainian troops leave the areas they occupy, the fighting will stop. If they do not do this, we will achieve this by military means,” the head of the Kremlin said on Thursday.
Lots to do
After these words, he launched brutal attacks. Dozens of rockets and hundreds of drones attacked Ukrainian targets over the weekend, killing at least six people. None of Trump's representatives commented on Moscow's aggressive actions. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who led Sunday's negotiations with Witkoff and Kushner, described the talks as “productive.” However, much remains to be done.
“We want not only to end the war, but also to ensure Ukraine's security forever.” Rubio added. Unlike Witkoff, the former senator is perceived as a balanced and critical person towards Russia. Rubio also played a key role in integrating Kiev and Europeans in negotiations after the first version of the peace plan, promoted by Witkoff, was extremely pro-Russian.
US-Ukraine negotiations, Florida, November 30, 2025.Chandan Khanna / AFP
Sunday's talks in Florida were led by Rustem Umerov, Kyiv's national security adviser. Zelensky's trusted associate and former head of the presidential administration, Andriy Yermak, resigned on Friday due to corruption allegations. The politician did not enjoy any sympathy from the American side.
“We achieved it significant progress in promoting a dignified peace and bringing our positions closer to that of the US side,” Umerov said after the meeting. “Our most important goals – security, sovereignty and lasting peace – remain unchanged and are shared by the US side.” Further consultations will be held to agree on a joint framework decision.
Skepticism in Kiev
The American side met with the Ukrainians at the Shell Bay Golf Club north of Miami. The private club is owned by Witkoff, and the membership fee is reportedly over $1 million. (PLN 3.6 million). Over the weekend, the Wall Street Journal published an article titled “Making Money Instead of Waging War: Trump's Real Plan for Peace in Ukraine.” The newspaper stated that Witkoff talked to Moscow's representatives primarily about… economic contractsto which the terms of the peace plan, and thus the Ukrainians, would have to be subordinated.
After the talks in Miami, President Zelensky stated that it is important “that the talks have a constructive character and that all topics are discussed openly, with a clear emphasis on ensuring Ukraine's sovereignty and national interests.”
However, after the experience of the Alaska summit in mid-August, there is skepticism in Kiev about what Witkoff will bring from Moscow this time. “Ukrainians basically have the impression that the U.S. side is trying to bypass Zelensky during the consultations with Putin, agrees something with Putin and then wants to talk to Ukraine again,” a senior official familiar with the negotiations told POLITICO on Sunday.
