President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met face-to-face at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Florida today and later spoke at a joint press conference where Trump said they made a lot of progress.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: We had a terrific meeting. We discussed a lot of things. As you know, I had an excellent phone call with President Putin that lasted for over two hours. We discussed a lot of points, and I do think we're getting a lot closer, maybe very close.
KEITH: NPR's Luke Garrett joins us now with the latest on President Trump's call with Russian President Zelenskyy - or Russian President Putin and also this meeting with President Zelenskyy. So talk about this meeting. What did they say at their joint press conference?
LUKE GARRETT, BYLINE: So Trump said the two leaders made real progress today, but they need more time still. Most importantly, Zelenskyy said the U.S.-Ukraine security guarantees are, quote, "100% agreed." Now, the exact details still remain unclear, and Zelenskyy said he plans to meet with Trump again along with European leaders later in January.
KEITH: OK, so not at the finish line but closer. You know, in the last few months, we've seen U.S. envoys and Ukrainian leaders meet in Geneva, Switzerland, Miami, Florida, then in Berlin, Germany, and we haven't seen a peace deal. Do you have any sense of how meaningful today's meeting at Mar-a-Lago was?
GARRETT: So it's notable because Trump is talking to both leaders of these warring nations. Earlier today, you know, Trump was on the phone with Putin, and in front of the press and Zelenskyy, Trump relayed his message to the Russian leader.
TRUMP: Got to make a deal. Got to get it done. Too many people die. And I think both presidents want to make a deal.
GARRETT: Now, to be clear, we saw similar meetings and statements back in October, the last time Zelenskyy visited the U.S. But what's new now is this peace proposal, the text. Back in November, Russia and the U.S. drafted a 28-point peace plan, which many criticized as, you know, favoring Moscow. Since then, the U.S. and Ukrainian diplomats have gone back and forth, whittling this deal down to 20 points. Now Zelenskyy says, you know, this 20-point plan is 90% complete.
KEITH: There are a lot of percentages, a lot of math. We won't do the math. But what's in this proposed plan?
GARRETT: So security guarantees are at the top of the list, as we just heard from Zelenskyy. An earlier version of the peace plan, you know, would allow Ukraine to maintain a peacetime army of 800,000 troops. In this plan, the West would also help Ukraine with air defenses. On the steps of Mar-a-Lago, Zelenskyy said, you know, he wanted to talk to Trump about the logistics, the step-by-step, you know, actions that would ensure security for Ukraine. And he was hoping for some sort of protections that resemble NATO member states. So, you know, we'll see if that pans out.
KEITH: And of course Putin has said that Ukraine entering NATO is an absolute nonstarter redline. Let's focus on the 10% that remains. How does this peace plan address the land that Russia and Ukraine have been fighting over?
GARRETT: Right. Troops have fought and died over the eastern region of Ukraine, and deciding who controls this area remains a contested point. But earlier this week, Zelenskyy told reporters that Ukraine was ready to pull troops back from areas in eastern Donetsk, a region still under Ukrainian control. Zelenskyy said he would do this if and only if Russia did the same and pulled its forces back in Donetsk as well. You know, today, Trump and Zelenskyy said they're going to discuss these very touchy and delicate territory discussions.
KEITH: So I feel like we've seen this movie before many times. What are you watching for as the U.S. and Ukraine continue to hammer out this plan?
GARRETT: Right. So first, you know, Trump said he's going to call Putin back. So we will see if anything comes out of that call, that second call today. And the Europeans will have to weigh in. But, you know, as far as timing goes, Trump said negotiations were in their final stages but gave no deadline. This meeting, you know, later in January that Zelenskyy talked about, that's another thing to, you know, keep an eye on. But one other factor here, Tam, is, you know, Trump's time and attention. Tomorrow, he's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the ceasefire in Gaza, an equally complex and, you know, violent war. So there's a lot to keep track of.
KEITH: That's NPR's Luke Garrett. Thanks for the latest.
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