MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy say they are making progress toward peace in Ukraine.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
The two leaders met on Sunday at Mar-a-Lago, where the president has been spending the holidays. Meanwhile, Russian attacks continued over the weekend, and key issues remain unresolved. Coming up, we'll speak with former Pentagon official Evelyn Farkas. First, let's get the facts.
MARTIN: NPR White House correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben is here to give us the latest on the negotiations. Good morning, Danielle.
DANIELLE KURTZLEBEN, BYLINE: Good morning, Michel.
MARTIN: So what was your takeaway from this meeting? Is a peace deal coming?
KURTZLEBEN: Well, the very fact that they met seems to be a sign of momentum. Zelenskyy had put forward this 20-point peace proposal this past week, and the two men met shortly after and said they agreed on most of it. But when they talked to reporters after their meeting, a peace deal certainly didn't seem imminent. Both men came out saying, essentially, we're optimistic and we'll keep talking, but that's roughly where they seemed to be before the meeting. To put it another way, before the meeting, Zelenskyy had said they were at 90% agreement. And after the meeting, he said they were at 90% agreement.
MARTIN: And what about President Trump? What did he say?
KURTZLEBEN: Well, Trump had a lengthy phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin before his in-person meeting with Zelenskyy and came away optimistic, and in that optimism, he was trying to make it sound like Russia could eventually be on board with all of this. At one point, Trump said that, quote, "Russia wants to see Ukraine succeed." But then Russia bombarded Kyiv over the weekend. So there's a big question as to how ready Russia really is to stop fighting.
Now, all of this is another shift in Trump's hot and cold feelings towards Putin. Trump has gone from saying earlier this year, he could easily convince Putin to end the war to being pretty frustrated with him, and now Trump seems to feel more warmly again. But there was one more thing that really stood out to me. A reporter asked Trump how long it might be before all of the final disagreements are ironed out. And Trump said this.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: So if it went really well, you know, maybe a few weeks, and if it went poorly, longer, and if it went really poorly, it's not going to happen. That would be a shame.
KURTZLEBEN: Now, this is Trump talking. He loves hyperbole. He loves talking up his own abilities. The very fact that he's lukewarm on success could signal that there's still some distance to go here.
MARTIN: So tell us more about that. What are the hang-ups?
KURTZLEBEN: Well, one question is how to deal with the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, which Russia wants to control. Zelenskyy wants it to be a demilitarized zone, and he says that Ukraine will withdraw troops if Russia does. Trump said that on Donbas, he and Zelenskyy do not agree, but they're getting closer. On that note, Ukraine also wants security guarantees.
This morning, Zelenskyy told Ukrainian press that he asked Trump for a 30- to 50-year guarantee. Zelenskyy wants to know that the U.S. and other allies in Europe will defend Ukraine if Russia attacks again. A reporter asked Trump how much he and Zelenskyy agree on all of that, and Trump said they're close but added that there are what he called very tough issues to still work out. Finally, there's a nuclear plant in southeastern Ukraine that Russia took control of early in this conflict. The fate of that plant has been a big sticking point, and it was unclear yesterday what progress Trump and Zelenskyy made.
MARTIN: And what comes next?
KURTZLEBEN: Well, Trump said he would talk to Putin after this meeting, but we haven't heard more from the White House about any type of conversation. Beyond that, he said he and Zelenskyy would be talking more. Zelenskyy said Trump will host a Ukrainian delegation and European leaders in January. But the big question, of course, is, if and when Trump and Zelenskyy can agree, can Putin agree with them? We don't know much about that at all - for example, whether Russia is willing to withdraw from Donbas or accept security guarantees.
MARTIN: That is NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben. Danielle, thank you.
KURTZLEBEN: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
