Zelenskyy’s Paris talks launch a crucial week of diplomacy as U.S.–Ukraine negotiations narrow to a 19-point plan, while U.S. envoy Witkoff prepares to meet Putin again.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is on a visit to France, said that his talks with French President Emmanuel Macron lasted “several hours.” This was reported by Radio Svoboda.
“We managed to go through a lot of details. The main focus was on negotiations aimed at ending the war and on security guarantees. Peace must become truly reliable. The war must end as soon as possible. Much now depends on the activity of every leader,” he wrote on Telegram, without specifying any possible agreements or the results of the talks.
Zelenskyy added that today there will also be talks with other leaders.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at the Élysée Palace in Paris on December 1 for talks with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, launching another week of intensive diplomacy aimed at ending Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The visit, focused on finding “conditions for a just and lasting peace,” came one day after talks in Florida between U.S. and Ukrainian delegations, which both sides described as productive without providing further details.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said on December 1 that “this could be a decisive week” for peace efforts.
U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, as the Kremlin announced, will hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on December 2. This will be Witkoff’s sixth meeting with Putin since January.
The initial 28-point proposal from the United States alarmed the Ukrainian authorities. On November 23, the Ukrainian delegation held talks in Geneva with U.S. Secretary of State Rubio and other American officials.
Those talks resulted in the development of a 19-point plan that leaves several key issues on the table, including the fate of part of Ukraine’s Donbas, Ukraine’s aspirations to join NATO, and a potential cap on the size of Kyiv’s armed forces. A week later, the talks in Florida took place.
