Ukraine peace talks end with no progress

MIAMI — Three days of talks between Ukrainian and US officials produced no apparent breakthrough on Saturday as Russia launched another series of drone and missile strikes on its neighbor.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he joined his negotiators for a "very substantive and constructive" call with United States envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, as part of the third day of meetings in Florida.

"Ukraine is committed to continuing to work honestly with the American side to bring about real peace," Zelensky said on Telegram, adding that the parties agreed "on the next steps and the format of the talks with America".

In Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron said he would meet Zelensky, United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in London on Monday to "take stock" of the negotiations on the US-drafted plan on how to end the almost four-year conflict.

Ahead of Saturday's talks, Russia launched more than 700 drones and missiles at Ukraine overnight, targeting critical infrastructure, such as energy sites and railways, and triggering heating and water outages for thousands of households.

The Russian Defense Ministry said they had targeted "Ukrainian military-industrial complex enterprises and the energy facilities that support them", and added that "all designated targets were hit".

The talks came after Witkoff and Kushner met Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on Tuesday, with Moscow rejecting parts of the US proposal.

"Both parties agreed that real progress toward any agreement depends on Russia's readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace, including steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killings," said a readout of the Miami talks posted on Friday by Witkoff on X.

'Last 10 meters'

US special envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg, who is due to step down next month, told the Reagan National Defense Forum that efforts to resolve the conflict were in "the last 10 meters", which he said was always the hardest.

The two main outstanding issues, Kellogg said, were on territory — primarily the future of the Donbas region — and the future of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe's largest, which is under Russian control.

"If we get those two issues settled, I think the rest of the things will work out fairly well," he said on Saturday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California. "We're almost there."

Washington's initial plan to bring an end to the conflict involved Ukraine surrendering land that Russia has not been able to win on the battlefield in return for security promises that fall short of Kyiv's aspirations to join NATO.

However, the nature of the security guarantees that Ukraine could get has so far been shrouded in uncertainty, beyond an initial plan saying that jets to defend Kyiv could be based in Poland.