Zelenskyy says US presses for June peace deal, offers to host Ukraine-Russia talks 

KYIV, UKRAINE: The United States has given Ukraine and Russia until June to reach an agreement to end the nearly four-year-old war, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, warning that Washington is prepared to pressure both sides if the deadline is missed.

“The Americans are proposing the parties end the war by the beginning of this summer and will probably put pressure on the parties precisely according to this schedule,” Zelenskyy told reporters.

He added that US officials want a clearly defined timetable for negotiations and next steps. “They say they want to do everything by June. And they will do everything to end the war,” he added.

Zelenskyy says talks to move to US, possibly Miami

Zelenskyy said Washington has proposed hosting the next round of trilateral talks involving the US, Ukraine and Russia on American soil for the first time, potentially in Miami, as early as next week. Ukraine has agreed to take part.

He also revealed that Russia has presented the US with a sweeping $12 trillion economic proposal, which he dubbed the “Dmitriev package” after Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev. According to Zelenskyy, bilateral economic arrangements with Washington are being discussed as part of the broader negotiations.

Russia-Ukraine peace deadlines passed without deal

The June target follows a series of missed timelines set by Donald Trump. Last year, Trump warned of “very severe tariffs” if Russia failed to reach a deal by August 8, a deadline that passed without an agreement. While secondary tariffs were imposed on some buyers of Russian oil, several were later rolled back.

Trump later said he wanted Ukraine to accept a new peace deal by Thanksgiving, but that deadline also elapsed without a breakthrough.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s negotiating team has submitted a report following meetings with US and Russian representatives, outlining how the talks unfolded and identifying the most sensitive and constructive issues. He stressed that Ukraine needs concrete results as negotiations continue.

As diplomatic efforts continued, Russia stepped up attacks on Ukraine’s energy sector. Zelenskyy said more than 400 drones and around 40 missiles were launched overnight on Saturday, hitting power grids, generation facilities and distribution networks.

Ukrenergo, Ukraine’s state electricity transmission operator, said the assault, the second mass strike on energy infrastructure this year, forced nuclear power plants to cut output after key high-voltage substations were damaged. Eight energy facilities across eight regions were hit.

“As a result of missile strikes on key high-voltage substations that ensured the output of nuclear power units, all nuclear power plants in territories under control were forced to reduce their load,” the company said, adding that the national power deficit has increased “significantly,” triggering extended rolling blackouts across nationwide. 

Gaps remain after Abu Dhabi talks

The latest deadline comes after US-brokered trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi failed to produce a breakthrough, with both sides holding to sharply divergent positions. Russia continues to demand that Ukraine withdraw from the Donbas region, a condition Kyiv has repeatedly rejected.

“Difficult issues remained difficult,” Zelenskyy said. “Ukraine once again confirmed its positions on the Donbas issue. ‘We stand where we stand’ is the fairest and most reliable model for a ceasefire today.”

He said the most contentious issues would have to be resolved at a trilateral meeting between national leaders.