Davos, Switzerland. US President Donald Trump said peace efforts on Ukraine were “getting close” as he met President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on Thursday. US envoy Steve Witkoff said negotiations were down to one last issue.
Meeting in Davos and recent diplomacy
US and Ukrainian officials have spent weeks in shuttle diplomacy as Kyiv faces pressure from Trump to secure peace in the nearly four-year-old war, despite few signs Moscow wants to stop fighting.
“I think they’re getting close. A lot of people are being killed. We’ve got to get it done,” Trump said as Zelenskiy arrived at the forum in the Swiss resort. The Ukrainian presidency said shortly after 1pm local time in Davos (noon GMT) that the meeting had begun.
Zelenskiy said earlier this week he would only travel to Davos if he could sign agreements with Trump on US security guarantees and post-war reconstruction funding for Ukraine. On Wednesday, Trump said he would meet Zelenskiy on the sidelines of the gathering, adding that a deal was “reasonably close”.
Talks led by US envoys
Witkoff told an audience at the World Economic Forum: “If both sides want to solve this, we’re going to get it solved.” He added: “I think we’ve made a lot of progress.”
Witkoff held talks in recent days with Ukrainian officials in Davos, following weekend discussions in Florida. He was due in Moscow with fellow US envoy Jared Kushner later on Thursday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on a possible plan to end the war.
Context in Ukraine and Russia’s position
Zelenskiy, facing an energy crisis at home from Russian air strikes that have left parts of the capital and other regions without power and heating, was due to deliver a speech after his meeting with Trump, according to his spokesperson.
Russia has been cool on the US-led peace push and has demanded that Kyiv give up part of its eastern Donetsk region, which Moscow has been unable to conquer despite advances on the battlefield.
What details will you be watching for from the Trump-Zelenskiy meeting in Davos?