Kyiv, 27 December (H.S.): Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Friday that he will convene with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida on Sunday, December 28, to finalize a revised 20-point peace framework aimed at halting Russia's nearly four-year invasion, amid accelerated diplomacy yielding near-complete accords.
Zelensky disclosed the Mar-a-Lago rendezvous—anticipated since Thursday's very good consultations with Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner—declaring the blueprint 90 percent ready following relentless 24/7 negotiations that salvaged Ukraine's core interests from an initial 28-point U.S. draft critics deemed Kremlin-favorable.
In an X post heralding the high-level parley, Zelensky emphasized, We have agreed on a meeting at the highest level—with President Trump in the near future. A lot can be decided before the New Year, underscoring progress on security guarantees, economic recovery, and reconstruction documents now nearly ready or fully prepared.
20-Point Framework: Frontline Freeze, Nuclear Pledges, and Territorial Stalemate
The blueprint, unveiled by Zelensky on December 23 and forwarded to Moscow by Christmas Eve, mandates freezing current frontlines, establishing demilitarized free economic zones via Russian withdrawals from occupied swaths of Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Sumy, and Kharkiv oblasts, and all-for-all prisoner swaps including civilians and children.
Ukraine commits to non-nuclear status under the NPT, accelerated U.S. free trade talks, peacetime forces capped at 800,000, and prompt presidential elections post-ratification—potentially via parliamentary vote or 60-day referendum—overseen by a Trump-chaired Peace Council, though Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant control and Donbas sovereignty remain unresolved flashpoints.
Moscow's Maximalism Clouds Optimism
Trump, withholding endorsement in Friday Politico remarks—He doesn't have anything until I approve it—faces Putin's intransigence on full Donbas annexation, even as Zelensky concedes some concessions while dropping NATO renunciation demands amid Russia's Saturday missile barrage on Kyiv.
The White House has yet to confirm, but Zelensky's overture signals Kyiv's pragmatic pivot toward enduring security over maximalist recovery.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
