President Volodymyr Zelensky met U.S. envoys in Berlin on Dec. 15 to continue discussions on a plan for ending the Russia-Ukraine war, a source close to the Presidential Office told the Kyiv Independent.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Kyiv and Washington continue to hold different positions on the issue of ceding Ukrainian territory, underscoring persistent divisions even as diplomatic efforts to end the war with Russia intensify.

He stressed the need to preserve Ukraine's dignity and said the diplomatic efforts to end this conflict would continue.

Kyiv will not accept any peace agreement to end Russia’s full-scale invasion that puts Ukraine's Donbas region under Moscow’s control, Volodymyr Zelensky has said. The Ukrainian president made the comments after Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov had said that Kyiv and Washington had made "real progress" during two-day talks in Berlin.

EADaily, December 16th, 2025. Volodymyr Zelensky, who has repeatedly refused Washington's compromise proposals for a settlement, said that it had not yet been possible to bring the positions on the issue of territories closer to the United States at the talks in Berlin.

Talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and a U.S. delegation led by U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have concluded in Berlin. — Ukrinform.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has relinquished Ukraine ’s bid to join Nato ahead of crunch peace talks with the US and European allies in Berlin. The Ukrainian president ditched his hopes to join the military alliance in what he said was a “compromise” to end the war with Russia.

A draft peace plan discussed with the US during talks in Berlin on Monday is “not perfect” but is “very workable,” Zelensky told reporters hours after the discussions.

Two days of talks between President Volodymyr Zelensky and allies have brought some progress on security guarantees, but Russia remains opposed to any foreign forces in Ukraine.