In a week marked by marathon negotiations, shifting diplomatic strategies, and renewed violence on the ground, the search for a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine remains fraught with complexity and setbacks. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s rejection of key elements of a U.S.-backed peace plan has cast new doubt on the prospects for a swift resolution, even as American and Ukrainian envoys prepare for yet another round of high-stakes talks in Florida.
On December 2, 2025, the Kremlin hosted a five-hour meeting between Putin and U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, joined by Jared Kushner, son-in-law to former President Donald Trump. The session, which Putin described as both “very useful” and “necessary,” focused on a comprehensive 28-point peace plan aimed at halting Russia’s nearly four-year-old invasion of Ukraine. According to Putin, the discussions were prolonged because “we had to go through each point” of the U.S. proposal, a process he called “difficult work.” The Russian leader admitted that Moscow rejected some of the plan’s provisions, describing consensus as “no easy task.”
The American side reportedly suggested dividing the 28 points into four packages to facilitate negotiation, but even this approach failed to bridge the gap. Putin’s aide, Yuri Ushakov, later told reporters that the two sides had discussed four different versions of a peace plan, but “no compromise option has yet been found.” Ushakov added, “Some of the American proposals appear more or less acceptable. They do, nevertheless, require further discussion. Certain wording we have been offered is not suitable for us.” He underscored that the issue of territory—namely, whether Ukraine must give up land to Russia—remains the most contentious point for both parties.
According to the Associated Press, Putin was particularly adamant about rejecting any requirement for Russia to withdraw from occupied Ukrainian territories, a central demand in the U.S. proposal. “There were provisions that Moscow said it was ready to discuss, while others we can’t agree to,” Putin told India Today, as cited by Russian state agencies. He refused to specify which elements might be open for compromise, warning, “I think it is premature. Because it could simply disrupt the working regime of the peace effort.”
The diplomatic flurry began in late November, with Ukrainian and American delegations meeting in Florida to draft the now-public 28-point plan. That effort was followed by further talks in Geneva, resulting in a condensed 19-point version, which Putin also rejected during the Moscow meeting. As reported by Fox News, U.S. officials described the discussions as “thorough” and “productive,” with “several new ideas of how to bridge the remaining issues” emerging over the past week. Still, the lack of a breakthrough was apparent.
Despite the impasse, the U.S. diplomatic team pressed forward. Witkoff and Kushner, after briefing President Trump and Ukrainian officials, invited Ukraine’s lead negotiator, Rustem Umerov, to Miami for a follow-up meeting scheduled for December 4. The Miami talks are expected to focus on the latest Russian demands and explore possible next steps. The original plan had included a stop in Europe to brief Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, but that meeting was canceled due to scheduling conflicts. A senior U.S. official told The New York Post that “ultimately, it was not feasible with timing.”
As diplomatic efforts unfolded, violence on the battlefield continued unabated. Overnight Russian strikes killed a 6-year-old girl in Kherson and wounded six people in Odesa, where drone attacks damaged the city’s energy infrastructure, according to reports from East2West News and Associated Press. Kryvyi Rih, President Zelenskyy’s hometown, was also hit by a ballistic missile, injuring several civilians and damaging dozens of buildings, a school, and gas pipelines. Meanwhile, Ukrainian drones targeted Nevinnomyssk Azot, a major Russian supplier of explosives and rocket fuel components.
The human cost of these ongoing hostilities underscores the urgency felt by many international actors. European leaders, however, have expressed frustration at being sidelined as the U.S. takes a leading role in negotiations. According to AP, some in Europe suspect Putin of feigning interest in the Trump administration’s peace push, using talks as a stalling tactic while military operations continue. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced plans to provide about €90 billion (roughly $105.1 billion) in support to Ukraine over the next two years, and the EU is considering leveraging up to €190 billion ($221.8 billion) in frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine’s military and budget needs.
This move has provoked sharp warnings from Moscow. Former Russian President and Security Council Deputy Chair Dmitry Medvedev declared that if the EU uses frozen Russian state assets for Ukraine, Moscow could treat it as a “special kind of casus belli”—a justification for war. “Repayment could come not through court, but through actual reparations paid in natural form by the defeated enemies of Russia,” Medvedev said, as reported by Reuters.
Against this backdrop, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has sought to project resilience and determination. Writing on X (formerly Twitter), he emphasized that “a dignified peace is only possible if Ukraine’s interests are taken into account.” Zelenskyy insisted that any peace effort must combine “constructive diplomacy plus pressure on the aggressor.” He added, “Ukraine was heard, and Ukraine was listened to. And that matters.”
While the U.S. and its allies continue to debate the best path forward, the situation on the ground remains volatile. Russian barrages of civilian areas have not abated, and Ukrainian counterstrikes have targeted Russian assets in occupied territories. The diplomatic process, for now, appears locked in a cycle of proposal and rejection, with both sides holding firm to core demands—territorial integrity for Ukraine, security guarantees for both, and, above all, an end to the violence that has upended millions of lives.
For now, all eyes are on Miami, where American and Ukrainian negotiators will try once more to find common ground amid a landscape littered with both hope and hardening positions. The world watches, aware that the fate of Ukraine—and the broader stability of Europe—may hinge on what happens next behind closed doors.