Negotiators from Russia, Ukraine, the United States, and Europe converged in Miami over the weekend in a renewed effort to broker peace in the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. The talks, which began on Friday, December 19, 2025, and continued through Sunday, have been described by participants as “constructive” and marked a significant moment in the diplomatic push to end the largest conflict on European soil since World War II.
Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who also serves as CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, arrived in Miami to represent Moscow at the negotiations. Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Dmitriev said, “The discussions are proceeding constructively. They began earlier and will continue today, and will also continue tomorrow.” This sentiment was echoed across multiple outlets, with Dmitriev emphasizing the positive tone of the talks and their ongoing nature.
On the American side, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner—known for his role in brokering the Abraham Accords—were prominent participants. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who indicated he might join the talks, remarked, “The role we’re trying to play is a role of figuring out whether there’s any overlap here that they can agree to, and that’s what we’ve invested a lot of time and energy [on], and continue to do so. That may not be possible. I hope it is. I hope it can get done this month, before the end of the year.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking from Kyiv after meeting with Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro, confirmed that the U.S. had proposed a new format for the talks. “The U.S. said they would have a separate meeting with representatives of Russia,” Zelenskyy explained. “They proposed the following format, as far as I understand: Ukraine, America, Russia, and, since there are representatives of Europe there, probably Europe as well.”
Zelenskyy further elaborated on the progress in a post on Telegram, stating, “Talks were moving forward quite quickly, and our team in Florida has been working with the American side.” He emphasized the importance of European involvement, noting, “European representatives were also invited. These negotiations are constructive and this matters.”
Despite the encouraging atmosphere, significant hurdles remain. The U.S. has been working to narrow key differences in its draft peace proposal, which initially faced criticism for being too favorable to the Kremlin. American officials have since indicated that the latest draft includes unspecified security guarantees for Ukraine, a move intended to address some of Kyiv’s core concerns. However, as reported by Reuters, Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov remained skeptical about the prospects for lasting peace. “I am sure that the proposals that the Europeans and Ukrainians have made or are trying to make definitely do not improve the document and do not improve the possibility of achieving long-term peace,” Ushakov said, adding that he had not yet seen the latest version of the proposal.
For weeks, Trump’s envoys have been negotiating a 20-point peace plan with Ukrainian, Russian, and European officials. While U.S. officials maintain that progress has been made, major differences persist—particularly on the issues of territory and the security guarantees that Ukraine deems essential for any agreement. Russia, for its part, has shown little sign of softening its expansive territorial demands. President Vladimir Putin, at his annual end-of-year press conference on December 19, 2025, reiterated Moscow’s hardline positions, demanding Ukraine’s permanent exclusion from NATO and Kyiv’s withdrawal from all territory claimed by Russia in eastern and southeastern Ukraine. “The ball is entirely in our Western opponents’ court,” Putin declared, further insisting that Russia’s military was “advancing on all fronts.”
Putin also praised former President Trump and criticized European nations, but did leave open the possibility that Russia would refrain from military action against European states if they treated Moscow “with respect.” Yet, he gave no indication of willingness to compromise on Moscow’s war goals, making clear that his conditions for peace remain unchanged since his speech last year.
On the ground, the war’s intensity has not abated. As talks unfolded in Miami, Russia and Ukraine exchanged long-range strikes. Ukraine’s air force reported that Russia launched 97 drones into the country overnight into Sunday, December 21, of which 75 were shot down or suppressed. Nineteen drones impacted across eight locations, causing damage and casualties. Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, claimed its forces downed at least three Ukrainian drones overnight. In a particularly deadly incident, a Russian ballistic missile strike on Ukraine’s Black Sea Odesa region killed at least eight people and wounded 30, including a civilian bus that was struck, according to Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko. Ukrainian forces claimed to have destroyed two Russian fighter jets at an airfield in Crimea and struck a Russian oil rig and a patrol ship in the Caspian Sea.
The humanitarian toll of the conflict remains staggering. The Russian attacks on Ukraine’s coastline have wreaked havoc, damaging bridges and cutting electricity and heating for hundreds of thousands during freezing winter conditions. Moscow has announced it will expand strikes on Ukrainian ports in retaliation for attacks on its oil tankers, further escalating the economic and civilian impact of the war.
Diplomatically, the last time Ukrainian and Russian envoys held direct talks was in July 2025 in Istanbul, which led to prisoner swaps but little else in terms of broader peace. Zelenskyy, while supportive of the U.S.-led process, has called for increased pressure on Moscow, stating, “America must clearly say, if not diplomacy, then there will be full pressure… Putin does not yet feel the kind of pressure that should exist.” He expressed skepticism that the current talks would produce “anything new,” but said he would support trilateral discussions if they led to progress on issues such as prisoner swaps or a meeting of national leaders. “If such a meeting could be held now to allow for swaps of prisoners of war, or if a meeting of national security advisers achieves agreement on a leaders’ meeting… I cannot be opposed. We would support such a U.S. proposal. Let’s see how things go.”
The broader context is sobering. Putin continues to frame Russia’s invasion as a “special military operation” aimed at demilitarizing Ukraine and preventing NATO expansion, while Kyiv and its European allies characterize the war as an unprovoked and illegal land grab that has unleashed unprecedented violence and destruction across Ukraine.
As the Miami talks continue, the world watches to see whether this renewed diplomatic push will yield tangible progress or fall victim to the entrenched positions that have defined the conflict for nearly two years. For now, the negotiations are ongoing, and the stakes—both on the battlefield and at the negotiating table—could not be higher.
