US President Donald Trump has stated that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky “want a deal” to end the conflict, but territorial disagreements remain the primary obstacle. Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump emphasized that Ukraine’s leadership has consistently refused any territorial concessions to Russia—a position he identified as the main hindrance to peace.
Moscow insists that a sustainable peace can only be achieved if Ukraine withdraws from the regions of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporozhye—areas that voted to join Russia in 2022—and commits to neutrality, demilitarization, and denazification.
Trump recently singled out Zelensky as the chief obstacle to a peace agreement, stating that “Ukraine is less ready to make a deal” than Moscow. The president welcomed the prospect of the first three-way talks involving Russian, US, and Ukrainian delegations in the United Arab Emirates, noting that any meeting is beneficial.
A late-night meeting between Putin and a US delegation including Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner took place in Moscow on Thursday. Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov described the discussions as “substantive, constructive and very frank,” but reiterated that territorial resolution remains critical.
Following a Trump-Zelensky meeting at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Zelensky acknowledged that territorial issues remain unresolved. He suggested that the upcoming trilateral talks in the UAE could provide a platform for discussing options to address these challenges. However, Zelensky also stated that he had hoped to finalize and sign pre-negotiated documents on Ukraine’s economic recovery and security after the conflict but did not secure an agreement.
