US and Ukrainian negotiators meet as Trump seeks to broker an end to Russia's war

Diplomats have been focused on revisions to a proposed 28-point plan developed in negotiations between Washington and Moscow. That plan has been criticized as being too weighted toward Russian demands. As the meeting began Sunday, Rubio focused on reassuring Ukraine.

“The end goal is, obviously, not just the end of the war,” Rubio said in brief remarks. “But it’s also about securing an end to the war that leaves Ukraine sovereign and independent and with an opportunity at real prosperity.”

“This is not just about peace deals,” the top American diplomat said as the teams sat down at the Shell Bay Club, a golf and racket club developed by Witkoff in Hallandale Beach.

Rustem Umerov, head of Ukraine’s security council, responded to Rubio by expressing his country's appreciation for U.S. efforts, a message geared toward Trump, who has at times claimed that Ukraine has not been sufficiently grateful for U.S. assistance during the war.

“U.S. is hearing us," Umerov said. "U.S. is supporting us. U.S. is working beside us.”

Umerov has been involved in ongoing talks. But until now, Ukraine's head negotiator had been Andrii Yermak, the powerful chief of staff of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. On Friday, Zelenskyy announced the resignation of Yermak, after his home was searched by anti-corruption investigators.

Zelenskyy's government has been roiled by fallout from a scandal over $100 million embezzled from the energy sector through kickbacks paid by contractors, causing newfound domestic pressures for Zelenskyy.

It was only a week ago that Rubio had met with Yermak in Geneva, with each side saying the talks had been positive in putting together a revised peace plan.

Among the other members of the Ukrainian delegation were Andrii Hnatov, the head of Ukraine’s armed forces, and presidential adviser Oleksandr Bevz.

The plan, which Trump has since played down as a “concept” or a “map” to be “fine-tuned,” would have imposed limits on the size of Ukraine’s military, blocked the country from joining NATO and required Ukraine to hold elections in 100 days. Negotiators have indicated the framework has changed, but it’s not clear how its provisions have been altered.

It had initially envisioned Ukraine ceding the entire eastern region of the Donbas to Russia — a sticking point for Kyiv.

Trump said on Tuesday that he would send Witkoff and perhaps Kushner to Moscow this week to meet with Putin about the plan. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, in comments published Sunday on Russian state television, said Putin would see Witkoff before Thursday, when Putin departs for India.

Both Witkoff and Kushner, like Trump, hail from the world of real estate that values dealmaking over the conventions of diplomacy. The pair also were behind a 20-point proposal that led to a ceasefire in Gaza.

Zelenskyy wrote on X that the Ukrainian delegation would “swiftly and substantively work out the steps needed to end the war.”

In his nightly address on Saturday, Zelenskyy said the American side was “demonstrating a constructive approach.”

“In the coming days it is feasible to flesh out the steps to determine how to bring the war to a dignified end,” he said.

Attacks continue despite diplomatic efforts to end the war

On Saturday, Russian drone and missile attacks in and around Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, killed at least three people and wounded dozens more, officials said. Fresh attacks overnight into Sunday killed one person and wounded 19 others, including four children, local officials said, when a drone hit a nine-story apartment block in the city of Vyshhorod in the Kyiv region.

In a post on Telegram Sunday, Zelenskyy said Russia had attacked Ukraine with 122 strike drones and ballistic missiles.

“Such attacks occur daily. This week alone, Russians have used nearly 1,400 strike drones, 1,100 guided aerial bombs and 66 missiles against our people. That is why we must strengthen Ukraine’s resilience every day. Missiles and air defense systems are necessary, and we must also actively work with our partners for peace,” Zelenskyy said.

“We need real, reliable solutions that will help end the war,” he added.

After Ukraine claimed responsibility for damaging a major oil terminal on Saturday near the Russian port of Novorossiysk, owned by the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, Kazakhstan told Ukraine on Sunday to stop attacking the Black Sea terminal. The CPC pipeline, which starts in Kazakhstan and ends at the Novorossisyk terminal, handles a large proportion of Kazakhstan's oil exports.

“We view what has occurred as an action harming the bilateral relations of the Republic of Kazakhstan and Ukraine, and we expect the Ukrainian side to take effective measures to prevent similar incidents in the future," Kazakhstan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Associated Press writer Elise Morton in London contributed to this report.

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Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine