Ukrainian negotiators are set to engage with US officials in Florida this Sunday, aiming to finalize details of Washington’s proposed framework for ending Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. This critical meeting comes as Kyiv grapples with mounting pressure on both military and political fronts. The US delegation is expected to include Secretary of State Marco Rubio, special envoy Steve Witkoff, and Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Following these discussions, US talks are scheduled to take place in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin later in the week.

The backdrop to these high-stakes negotiations is a weekend marked by violence across Ukraine, with at least six people killed and dozens wounded. A drone attack on the outskirts of Kyiv on Saturday night resulted in one fatality and 11 injuries, according to the regional governor. Concurrently, a Ukrainian security source claimed Kyiv was responsible for naval drone attacks on two oil tankers off Turkey’s Black Sea coast, which were believed to be covertly transporting sanctioned Russian oil.

The Florida talks will focus on refining a draft framework intended to end the war, now more than three years after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. An earlier 28-point US-Russian plan, drafted last month by Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s special envoy, and Steve Witkoff, faced significant criticism from Kyiv and European allies for being too favorable to Russia. That initial proposal, formulated without input from Ukraine’s European partners, would have required Ukraine to withdraw from cities in the eastern Donbas region, limit its army size, and forgo NATO membership. It also implied de facto US recognition of Donetsk, Crimea, and Luhansk as Russian territories.

However, the framework has been substantially revised following intense negotiations last weekend in Switzerland, led by Rubio and Ukrainian counterparts. Kyiv and its European partners now insist that the existing frontline must serve as the starting point for any territorial discussions. They firmly reject any recognition of land seized by Russia militarily and assert Ukraine’s sovereign right to decide on its potential membership in the EU and NATO, countering the Kremlin’s desire to impose conditions or a veto.

The US talks unfold amid significant turbulence within the Ukrainian government. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s powerful chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, was forced to resign on Friday after anti-corruption officials searched his apartment as part of a kickback scheme investigation. Yermak had been the lead negotiator in previous talks with the US. Zelenskyy has confirmed that the Ukrainian delegation in Florida will include Andrii Hnatov, head of Ukraine’s armed forces; Andrii Sybiha, the foreign minister; and Rustem Umerov, head of the security council. Zelenskyy anticipates that the results of recent meetings with the US in Geneva will now be “hammered out” in Florida.

Ukraine is under considerable pressure from Washington to agree to the terms of a deal, while Zelenskyy faces increasing domestic difficulties. Russia continues to make incremental gains on the frontline, and Ukrainian cities endure daily hours of blackouts due to a relentless bombardment of the nation’s power grid. Zelenskyy recently conveyed in a dramatic address that Ukraine is navigating one of the most challenging periods in its history but vowed not to betray his people. Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the Ukrainian ambassador to Britain and former commander-in-chief, a potential future presidential challenger, cautioned in the Telegraph that “a rushed peace will only lead to a devastating defeat and loss of independence,” emphasizing the necessity of “effective security guarantees” within any framework.

In related diplomatic efforts, French President Emmanuel Macron is scheduled to meet with Zelenskyy in Paris on Monday. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot conveyed to La Tribune Dimanche that “peace is within reach, if Vladimir Putin abandons his delusional hope of reconstituting the Soviet empire by first subjugating Ukraine.” Barrot further stated that “Vladimir Putin must accept the ceasefire or accept exposing Russia to new sanctions that will exhaust its economy, as well as intensified European support for Ukraine.”