Zelenskyy says further Ukraine-US talks to address ‘most difficult issues’

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday said that further talks between his negotiating team and that of the US will address what he described as the “most difficult issues.”

In a statement through US social media company X, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine’s chief negotiator Rustem Umerov delivered an initial report on the work of the Ukrainian negotiating team in France, which hosted a summit of the "Coalition of the Willing" on Tuesday.

“Another session of talks with envoys of the President of the United States (Donald Trump) will take place, and this will already be the third such session in two days. We expect, in particular, that the most difficult issues from the basic framework for ending the war will be discussed – namely, issues related to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and territories,” Zelenskyy noted.

He further said that he also instructed Ukraine’s negotiating team to discuss possible formats for leader-level meetings between Kyiv, Washington, and other European capitals.

“Ukraine does not shy away from the most difficult issues and will never be an obstacle to peace,” Zelenskyy added, noting that he expects a detailed report from their negotiating team by the end of the day.

In a later statement on X, Umerov said the Ukrainian delegation held consultations with the national security advisors of various countries, which he said was also attended by the US.

"The discussion focused on specific parameters of security guarantees, deterrence of Russian aggression, and the logic of the next steps in the peace process," he added.

Zelenskyy traveled to Paris on Tuesday, where he took part in the "Coalition of the Willing" summit, which was also attended by an American delegation, composed of US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Following the summit, a joint declaration was issued declaring the participation of coalition members in a US-led ceasefire monitoring mechanism for Ukraine, among other issues, as part of a broader framework of security guarantees for Kyiv.

Separately, a declaration of intent was signed by Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on the deployment of multinational forces to Ukraine in the event of a peace deal.

Witkoff said on X that the US delegation held several talks with the Europeans and the Ukrainian side while in Paris, and that they would be continuing our discussions with the Ukrainian delegation on Tuesday evening and on Wednesday.

Regarding the talks on Tuesday evening, Ukraine's Presidential Office said in a statement that the meeting addressed "specific issues relating to cooperation between Ukraine and the United States to achieve a just peace."

"On January 7 in Paris, the delegations of Ukraine, the United States, and European countries will continue work on security guarantees and a basic framework for ending the war," the statement added.