Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has once again appealed to the United States to take a stronger stance against Russia, arguing that Washington holds the greatest leverage to push Moscow toward ending its invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking as international diplomats gathered in Miami on Saturday for fresh negotiations, Zelenskyy stressed that sustained pressure—through diplomacy, military aid, and sanctions—is essential to stopping the war that has devastated his country.
Zelenskyy revealed that Washington had proposed the first in-person talks between Russia and Ukraine in six months. However, he openly questioned whether such discussions would lead to meaningful progress without firm pressure on the Kremlin.
According to the Ukrainian leader, only the United States possesses the political and economic influence capable of persuading Russia to halt its military campaign. He urged American leaders to use that influence decisively.
Zelenskyy emphasized the urgent need for increased arms supplies to Ukraine, alongside broader and tougher sanctions targeting the Russian economy. “America must clearly say: if not diplomacy, then there will be full pressure,” he said. “President Putin does not yet feel the level of pressure that should exist.”
His remarks in Kyiv coincided with the arrival of Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev in Miami, where delegations from Ukraine and Europe have also convened. The talks are being mediated by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former President Donald Trump.
Dmitriev announced his journey in a post on X, writing that he was “on the way to Miami,” accompanied by a peace dove emoji and a short video showing sunrise light breaking through clouds along a palm-lined beach. A Russian source later confirmed to AFP that the envoy had arrived in Florida.
As part of a peace framework reportedly promoted by Trump’s envoys, the United States would offer security guarantees to Ukraine. However, Kyiv may be pressured to relinquish some territory—an outcome that many Ukrainians strongly oppose.
On Friday, U.S. Secretary of State marco rubio reiterated that “there’s no peace deal unless Ukraine agrees to it,” pledging that Washington would not force Kyiv into accepting any agreement against its will. Rubio also indicated he might attend the Miami discussions in his hometown.
Earlier on Saturday, Zelenskyy said the United States had suggested a broader format for talks involving Russia, Ukraine, and the U.S., with possible European participation. He described such a joint meeting as “logical” given the scale of the conflict.
The most recent direct talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials took place in July in Istanbul, resulting in prisoner exchanges but yielding little tangible progress toward peace.
The presence of Russian and European representatives in Miami marks a shift from earlier efforts, when U.S. officials held separate negotiations with each side in different locations. Still, analysts say direct engagement between Russian and European negotiators remains unlikely due to severely strained relations.
Moscow, which launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, has repeatedly claimed that European involvement complicates negotiations rather than facilitating peace.
Russia Pushes Forward Militarily
The Miami talks come as Russian President Vladimir putin reaffirmed his commitment to continuing the military offensive. During his annual news conference on Friday, Putin praised Russia’s battlefield gains nearly four years into the war.
On Saturday, Russia announced it had captured two villages in Ukraine’s Sumy and Donetsk regions, continuing its slow but costly advance across eastern Ukraine.
Putin suggested that Russia could temporarily pause its strikes to allow Ukraine to hold a presidential election—an idea that Zelenskyy firmly rejected, citing ongoing security risks and constitutional concerns.
Meanwhile, the human cost of the war continues to rise. In Ukraine’s Odesa region, the death toll from an overnight Russian ballistic missile strike on port infrastructure climbed to eight, with nearly three dozen people wounded.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said the attack hit a passenger bus, stressing that the victims “were ordinary Ukrainians” with no connection to military targets.
In recent weeks, the Black Sea coastline has endured escalating Russian strikes that have damaged bridges, disrupted electricity supplies, and left hundreds of thousands of residents without heat in sub-zero temperatures.
Ukraine’s security service, the SBU, reported on Saturday that it had destroyed two Russian fighter jets at an airbase in occupied Crimea. Kyiv’s military also claimed strikes on a nearby patrol ship and a Russian oil rig in the Caspian Sea.
Putin continues to describe the invasion as a “special military operation” aimed at demilitarizing Ukraine and preventing NATO expansion.
Ukraine and its European allies, however, regard the war as the deadliest conflict on European soil since World War II—an illegal and unjustified land grab that has unleashed widespread death, destruction, and long-term instability across the region.
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