The path to continuing peace talks on Ukraine is unclear. This was recognized tonight by the president of the United States, promoter of contacts on a roadmap with too many gaps: priority in talks with Russia (the invader), disproportionate concessions to the Kremlin, secondary voice from kyiv, isolation of Europeans… Even so, the Republican said this morning that the negotiations have been “reasonably good.”
After their several-hour meeting in Moscow on Tuesday, US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner will now meet with top Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov. It will be in Florida, at home, this Thursday. It is assumed that they are going to convey to him the conclusions of what was discussed with Putin, nothing concrete, unless they are playing a game of confusion.
It doesn’t seem like it, if we look at Trump’s statements and tone in his appearance before the press tonight. From the Oval Office, he has said that the Russian would like to reach an agreement. “He would like to end the war. That was the impression he gave. Now, whether that impression was correct or not… The impression they had is that he would like to see the war over, return to a more normal life,” he indicated, an assessment that is similar to the one he made back in February, when he proposed the negotiating process for the first time, when he bought everything from . Now, scalded, he places less emphasis and recovers his health. Too many months putting up with that.
“I can’t tell you what will come out of that meeting, because it takes two to tango,” he said, although he added that the US had “something pretty well resolved.” [con Ucrania]”. “We’ll see what happens. It is a war that should never have started. It is a war that, if I were president, would never have happened,” he insisted.
The Kremlin stated yesterday on Wednesday that Putin accepted “some” US proposals aimed at ending the “special military operation”, as his regime calls the war, and that he was willing to continue working to find a compromise, but that “those compromises have not yet been found.” Both sides agreed not to reveal the content of their discussion two days ago, but at least one major obstacle to a solution remains: . Without a commitment regarding this territory, the Kremlin sees “no solution to the crisis.”
The president of Ukraine, , has again ruled out handing over the territory captured by Russia and has confirmed that his team was preparing for meetings in the US, adding that the dialogue with Trump’s representatives will continue. “Only by taking into account the interests of Ukraine is a dignified peace possible,” he said. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha took a stronger line, urging Putin to “stop wasting the world’s time.”
The wake-up call to Beijing
This morning, in addition, it was learned that the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, on an official visit to China, has sent a clear message to Beijing to get involved in reaching a ceasefire in Ukraine. in this conflict, without publicly encouraging war but maintaining and even strengthening its ties with the Kremlin, commercially and defensively, which has allowed Putin to breathe despite the international sanctions against him.
The French liberal, EFE reports, has called on his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, to get involved in concrete steps towards peace in Ukraine and demanded to correct the economic imbalances between Beijing and Europe, warning that the growing trade asymmetry “entails risks” for global stability. All in one. In a joint statement to the press after their meeting at the Great Hall of the People in the Chinese capital, Macron said that both countries must move towards “a robust and lasting peace” in Ukraine and asked Xi to support “at least a temporary cessation of hostilities in the form of a moratorium on attacks on critical infrastructure” ahead of winter.
French President Emmanuel Macron, with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, after a signing of agreements and contracts in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on December 4, 2025.
Trump had already proposed a truce of at least 30 days in the spring, which was accepted by Zelensky but .
“The conflict represents a vital threat to European security and to respect for the international order based on law,” said the French president, who stressed that France and China, as permanent members of the UN Security Council, have a “particular responsibility” in this area. Xi, for his part, declared that China “supports all efforts for peace” and expressed his hope that the parties can reach an agreement “fair, lasting, binding and accepted by all parties involved.”
The Chinese president also promised that Beijing “will continue to play a constructive role” and reaffirmed his opposition to “any irresponsible and discriminatory accusations” towards the Chinese position.
A complicated context
The negotiations have intensified at a difficult time for kyiv, which on its eastern front is facing its biggest corruption scandal of the war. Putin has declared that Moscow is willing to continue fighting to seize the rest of the territory it claims if kyiv does not hand it over at the negotiating table. “The progress and nature of the negotiations were influenced by the successes of the Russian army on the battlefield in recent weeks,” grandly defends Kremlin advisor Yuri Ushakov, who participated in this week’s US-Russia talks.
Zelensky’s chief of staff, Andri Yermak, who led the Ukrainian delegation to the peace talks, resigned on Friday. A situation that further weakens the position of the Ukrainians in the comings and goings of the negotiations.
In November, a draft of a US peace proposal was leaked, which alarmed Ukrainian and European officials, because they claimed that it carried excessive weight from Moscow. Too accommodating. The proposal involved the transfer of territory from Ukraine to Russia (especially the territory, plus the maintenance of Crimea in Russian hands, after its annexation in 2014), the readmission of Russia to the G8, the prohibition of Ukraine joining NATO and a reduction of its Armed Forces to a maximum of 600,000 troops.
European countries and, at talks in Geneva, the United States and Ukraine said they had created an updated and refined peace framework to end the war. Putin on Tuesday accused European powers of trying to sink peace talks by proposing ideas absolutely unacceptable to Moscow, while issuing threats that Russia was ready for a war with Europe if it started one.
Ukraine and its European allies have in turn accused Moscow of feigning interest in peace efforts, and UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said yesterday that Russia should “end the bluster and bloodshed and be ready to come to the table and support a just and lasting peace.” “What we see is that Putin has not changed course. He is pressing more aggressively on the battlefield,” Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna also declared. “It’s pretty obvious he doesn’t want any kind of peace.” Both spoke at a meeting of European NATO foreign ministers in Brussels.
NATO Secretary General Said at the same event that Ukraine’s partners will continue to provide military aid to ensure pressure is maintained on Moscow.
In fact, in the last few hours, the European Commission also announced that it would go ahead with its controversial plans to finance Ukraine with a loan based on those from Russia. In a concession to concerns raised by Belgium, which hosts most of the assets and fears costly judicial reprisals, the EU Executive also proposed the option of an EU loan based on common aid. EU leaders will have to decide on options later this month, as Ukraine faces a looming funding crisis.
The UN General Assembly also tonight called for the immediate and unconditional return of Ukrainian children “forcibly transferred” to Russia. Ukraine has accused its invader of kidnapping at least 20,000 Ukrainian children since the start of the conflict in February 2022. The assembly adopted the non-binding resolution by 91 votes in favor, 12 against and 57 abstentions. Russia was among the countries that rejected the measure.
It is because of this theft of minors that Putin himself was charged for alleged war crimes, such as “illegal deportation of the population” and “illegal transfer of the population” in Ukraine. The International Criminal Court (ICC) did so in March 2023, but for now the Russian president remains in his position because, although he has traveled outside the Russian Federation, no friendly state has deigned to arrest him. Nor has the US, where he traveled in August to meet Trump in Alaska.
