(L/R) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump stand for a family photo with other European leaders in the Cross Hall of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 18, 2025.
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | AFP | Getty Images
Tensions are mounting once again between U.S. President Donald Trump and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after the White House leader accused Ukraine’s head of state of not even reading the U.S.’ peace proposals yet.
“I’m a little bit disappointed that President Zelenskyy hasn’t yet read the proposal, that was as of a few hours ago,” Trump told reporters on Sunday night. “His people love it, but he hasn’t [read it],” Trump added.
“Russia, I guess, would rather have the whole country when you think of it, but Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I’m not sure that Zelenskyy is fine with it,” Trump said.
It’s uncertain which version of the U.S.-backed peace plan for Ukraine Trump was referring to but the president’s comments came a day after talks between U.S. and Ukrainian officials ended in Miami without an apparent agreement over the latest version of a draft peace plan.
There have been several versions of the purported peace plan as Russia and Ukraine have haggled — via their American intermediaries — over key details within the deal, particularly when it comes to demands for territorial concessions by Russia and security guarantees for Ukraine.
Trump’s outgoing Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg remarked Sunday that a deal to end the war was “really close” and that it depended on resolving two main outstanding issues: the future of Ukraine’s Donbas eastern region, which is broadly occupied by Russian forces, and the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine.
Ukraine has given a more cautious appraisal of the talks’ progress with Zelenskyy saying in his nightly address Sunday that the Miami talks — held between his new chief negotiator Rustem Umerov and Ukraine’s military chief of general staff, General Andriy Hnatov, and Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner — were “constructive, though not easy.”
Zelenskyy said he would have a detailed debrief with his negotiating team in person rather than over the phone, noting, somewhat pointedly, that “some matters can only be discussed in person.”
Talks move to London
Zelenskyy is travelling to London for talks on Monday as Kyiv and its European allies scramble to ensure that Ukraine’s territorial integrity and future security (as well as Europe’s) are not compromised in the face of growing U.S. pressure to agree to peace proposals initially seen as heavily favorable to Russia.
Zelenskyy is due to meet U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz for talks “which will focus on the ongoing peace negotiations and next steps,” Downing Street said Sunday. Zelenskyy will also travel to Brussels and Rome for further talks this week.
Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer talks to French President Emmanuel Macron during a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders amid negotiations to end the Russian war in Ukraine, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 18, 2025.
Alexander Drago | Reuters
Ukraine’s European allies are anxious to be seen and heard as peace proposals are discussed without their involvement, particularly given the security ramifications any deal will have for the wider continent.
The U.K. and France have been leading proponents of a “Coalition of the Willing,” a group of countries that could be part of a “reassurance force” in a post-war Ukraine that helps to guarantee its security.
Russia vehemently opposes the idea of foreign troops being deployed in Ukraine however, with Russian President Vladimir Putin saying they would be “legitimate targets.”
European leaders will be feeling more nervous about the U.S.’ potential for accommodating Russian demands after the release of Trump’s latest national security strategy last Friday, which said Europe risked “civilisational erasure” and that it was “far from obvious” whether European countries can “remain reliable allies.” The document also stated that Washington should reestablish strategic stability with Russia.
The Kremlin on Sunday praised the new strategy, saying it largely accorded with Russia’s “vision.”
While both the U.S. and Russia share a mutual desire for a future rapprochement, some distance remains when it comes to an immediate peace agreement over Ukraine.
Talks between Witkoff, Kushner and Russian officials held in Moscow last week also concluded without a breakthrough, with Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov telling reporters that the discussions were “very useful, constructive, and highly informative” but that there was more work to be done.
