President Trump and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky wrapped up their meeting on Sunday at Mar-a-Lago, often dubbed “the White House of the South.” Trump expressed optimism, stating that a peace agreement to resolve the conflict between Russia and Ukraine might be within reach.
During a press briefing following their discussions, Trump highlighted significant advancements made with Zelensky. They tackled nearly “95 percent” of the issues obstructing a peace deal, addressing what Trump described as the most lethal conflict since World War II. “We’ll see if it gets done; it’s certainly very close,” Trump remarked, adding, “No one else might have even approached this level of progress. It seemed unimaginable before.”
In addition, Trump and Zelensky communicated with several European leaders via phone, including France’s Emmanuel Macron, Finland’s Alexander Stubb, Poland’s Karol Nawrocki, Norway’s Jonas Gahr Støre, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, the UK’s Keir Starmer, Germany’s Friedrich Merz, NATO’s Mark Rutte, and the European Commission’s Ursula von der Leyen. Trump noted the importance of engaging with these leaders, emphasizing that their nations are geographically closer to the conflict zone than the U.S., which he has pointed out previously.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) December 28, 2025
Trump and Zelensky also spoke by phone with European leaders, including France’s Emmanuel Macron, Finland’s Alexander Stubb, Poland’s Karol Nawrocki, Norway’s Jonas Gahr Støre, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, United Kingdom’s Keir Starmer, Germany’s Friedrich Merz, NATO’s Mark Rutte, and the European Commission’s Ursula von der Leyen. Trump remarked that he and Zelensky thought it “was appropriate” to touch base with those officials who lead countries, as Trump has noted in the past, that are in much closer proximity to Russia and Ukraine than is the United States.
