Ukrainian delegation meets Trump officials in Florida

US President is pushing for end to Ukraine war, but has faced criticism for seeming to accommodate Russian demands

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, in Florida with Ukrainian Security Council Secretary Rustem Umerov, second from right. AFP

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday held talks with a Ukrainian delegation, as the administration of President Donald Trump pushes to end Russia's war on its neighbour on terms critics say are too accommodating for Moscow.

Mr Rubio told reporters after about four hours of talks that the session with the Ukrainian team in Florida was productive but there is still work to do in the search for a peace deal.

“It’s not just about the terms that ends fighting,” he said. “It’s about also the terms that set up Ukraine for long-term prosperity … I think we built on that today but there’s more work to be done."

Mr Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, is scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in the next few days.

Mr Rubio, Mr Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Mr Trump's son-in-law, represented the American side in the high-level talks, held at a sensitive time as Ukraine continues to defend against Russian forces that invaded in 2022 while dealing with a domestic corruption scandal.

Diplomats have focused on revisions to a proposed US-led plan that was developed in negotiations between Washington and Moscow. That plan has been criticised as being too weighted toward Russian demands.

In brief remarks before Sunday's meeting, Mr Rubio said the "end goal" went beyond finishing the fighting. “It’s also about securing an end to the war that leaves Ukraine sovereign and independent and with an opportunity at real prosperity," he said.

Washington has put forward a plan to end the more than three-year conflict. The US wants to finalise that with the approval of Moscow and Kyiv.

An initial 28-point proposal – drafted without input from Ukraine's European allies – would have forced Ukraine to withdraw from its eastern Donetsk region and led the US to recognise the Donetsk, Crimea and Lugansk regions as de facto Russian territories.

The US pared back the original draft after criticism from Kyiv and Europe, but the current contents remain unclear.

The Ukrainian delegation was led by Security Council Secretary Rustem Umerov. As talks began, he said officials were to discuss the future of Ukraine, as well as its security and ways to rebuild the country.

In a post on X, Mr Umerov said he was in “constant contact” with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as the meeting progressed.

“We have clear directives and priorities: safeguarding Ukrainian interests, ensuring substantive dialogue, and advancing on the basis of the progress achieved in Geneva,” he said on X.

The Florida talks are expected to build on negotiations a week ago in Geneva between US, Ukrainian and European officials.