Zelenskiy sends core team to Miami to negotiate with Americans, Trump tightens screws on Ukraine capitulation ahead of Davos Forum

A high-ranking Ukrainian delegation is set to arrive in Miami on Saturday, carrying a thin portfolio and a difficult mandate with huge expectations: to bridge the widening gulf between President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Donald Trump before world leaders meet in Davos next week, Kyiv Post Washington correspondent Alex Raufoglu writes.

The trio of top Ukrainian negotiators — Rustem Umerov, Kiril Budanov and David Arakhamia — are set to meet with Trump associates, including special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, in what diplomats see as a last-ditch diplomatic effort before pressure mounts on the world stage.

At the heart of the talks are two interconnected deals that Ukraine insists must be accepted or rejected together: mandatory security guarantees to deter future Russian aggression and an ambitious $800 billion reconstruction and prosperity framework that combines loans, grants and private investment.

Trump wants to force the hand of Ukraine, which is holding firm

Zelenski made it clear that he hoped both documents could be signed on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum. “From our side, in principle, I think we're done,” he said this week, signaling that Kiev considers the texts complete.

But Washington's tone is much cooler. While US officials are publicly wary of the Miami meetings, Trump's team is privately showing signs of impatience.

Even Trump said this week that he believes Vladimir Putin is ready for peace, seeing Zelensky — not Moscow — as the obstacle, despite Russia's unchanged military posture.

A senior Western official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described the unmanageable situation:

“It's about the levers of politics. Trump wants to build momentum ahead of Davos, and that means forcing Kiev to concede — even if the Russians haven't backed down,” the official told the Kyiv Post.

“Ukraine's position is simple: without security, there is no agreement,” he added.

Ukrainian officials say both deals were essentially finalized weeks ago. Experts say the US position has changed since then.

Zelensky: “We do not agree on some issues”

Zelenski said on Friday that he hoped the documents on security guarantees and the post-war recovery package to be discussed in Miami could be signed on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos next week, Reuters notes.

During the talks, the Kiev team also hopes to get clarification from the US on Russia's position on US-backed diplomatic efforts to end the war, Zelenskiy told a news conference in Kiev alongside Czech President Petr Pavel.

“I think we cooperated well with the American side, we just don't agree on some issues,” Zelenskiy said of the negotiations with Washington.

US President Donald Trump told Reuters earlier this week that he might meet Zelenskiy in Davos, a meeting the Ukrainian leader has publicly requested.

Zelenskiy said Ukraine had completed its part of the work on documents laying out a “prosperity package” to unlock funds needed for Ukraine's expensive post-war reconstruction, as well as US security guarantees aimed at stopping a future Russian attack.

Ukraine's ambassador to the US, Olga Stefanishyna, wrote on Facebook that “the purpose of the (Miami) visit is to refine these agreements with American partners.” “These could be signed … in Davos,” she added.

“Ultimatums are not, in my opinion, a viable model”

Washington has pressed Ukraine to accept a peace framework that it will then present to Moscow, while Kiev and its European allies have sought to ensure that Ukraine will not be attacked by Russia in the future.

“The ultimatums are not, in my opinion, a viable model for democratic relations between countries,” Zelenskiy said, without specifying what he was referring to.

On Friday, Zelensky also claimed that Russia was blocking peace efforts and cited Moscow's recent attacks on Ukraine's energy system as evidence of Moscow's real intentions.

“Each of these attacks on our energy sector and our cities shows quite clearly Russia's real interests and intentions: they are not interested in agreements, but in the further destruction of Ukraine,” he wrote on social media.