Trump, Zelenskyy optimistic on a Ukraine-Russia peace deal despite 'thorny issues'

Shortly before the meeting, Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone. Trump described it as a “good and very productive telephone call.”

President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy indicated after a face-to-face meeting Sunday that they are close to a potential peace deal to end Russia's war in Ukraine but did not announce any major breakthroughs.

During a news conference following their sit-down at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property in Florida, Trump and Zelenskyy struck an optimistic tone while acknowledging that challenges remain.

“You can say 95%, but I don’t like to say percentages. I just think we’re doing very well,” Trump said. “There are one or two very thorny issues, very tough issues, but I think we’re doing very well. We made a lot of progress today.”

Zelenskyy echoed the sentiments.

"We had a really great discussion," he told reporters. "We discussed all the aspects of the peace framework."