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Zelensky says Ukraine ready to meet US negotiators in coming days

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine is ready to meet with American negotiators in the coming days and that he has conveyed the proposal to US President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. In his address he framed the talks as part of ongoing team-level negotiations on paths to peace, voiced Ukraine's support for a US-backed energy ceasefire, and stressed that Russia must also join such an agreement.

Key points

  • Zelensky said Ukraine is ready to meet US negotiators in the coming days.
  • He stated he conveyed the proposal to envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner through his team.
  • Ukrainian and American sides remain in constant communication, with teams continuing peace-track negotiations.
  • Ukraine supports the US-backed proposal for an energy ceasefire, but Zelensky said Russia must also be part of it.
  • Trilateral-style talks with US, European, and Ukrainian representatives were held in Miami on October 9.
  • Witkoff and Kushner cancelled their planned Moscow trip after the Miami meeting.
  • Zelensky said negotiations with the United Kingdom, Denmark, and Lithuania are planned this week.

Why it matters

A possible imminent high-level US-Ukraine meeting would mark a new step in the diplomatic track that produced the short Miami talks on October 9. Ukraine's public backing of a US energy ceasefire, paired with the demand that Russia also sign on, sets the terms under which Kyiv is willing to engage. The Witkoff-Kushner decision to skip Moscow after Miami points to a recalibration of US engagement.

What happened

In an address on October 13, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine is ready to meet with American negotiators in the coming days and had conveyed that proposal to US President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. He described ongoing team-level communication between the two sides on paths to peace. Zelensky said Ukraine supports the US president's proposal for an energy ceasefire but stressed that Russia must also join such an agreement. He also announced that "good decisions in support of Ukraine" are expected this week and that negotiations with the United Kingdom, Denmark, and Lithuania are planned for the same week. The Miami talks on October 9, which brought together US, European, and Ukrainian representatives and ended earlier than the originally planned two days, preceded Witkoff and Kushner's cancellation of a planned Moscow trip. Separately, Zelensky reported that two additional EU accession negotiating clusters were opened on the day of his address and that all six are expected to be opened by the end of the year.

How Ukrainian sources describe it

Ukrainian outlets, including Ukrinform, hromadske, and ZN.UA, centered Zelensky's statements, highlighting Ukraine's readiness to meet, its support for a US-backed energy ceasefire, and the insistence that Russia must be part of it. They paired the diplomatic messaging with domestic governance items: Kyiv's lagging winter-resilience preparations, meetings with regional mayors and security officials, and EU accession cluster progress.

Background

Trilateral-style talks involving US, European, and Ukrainian representatives were held in Miami on October 9. The meeting was originally planned for two days but ended earlier than scheduled. After the Miami meeting, US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner cancelled their planned trip to Moscow.