Strikes between Russia and Ukraine show no signs of slowing down, but defence officials have expressed hope that there could be a diplomatic breakthrough soon
Representatives from the US and Russia are expected to meet this weekend to discuss the future of Ukraine.
The talks in Miami are the latest effort by the Trump administration to broker a peace deal between the two sides.
Special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are to meet the Russian delegation, which includes the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund Kirill Dmitriev for the negotiations, according to Politico.
The meeting in Miami follows talks held earlier this week in Berlin between Ukrainian and European officials.
Officials from the Trump administration believe that Russia will accept certain security guarantees for Ukraine – like the mutual defense promise offered by the US – but Vladimir Putin suggested that he would not compromise on his terms to end the war.
Here are four things to know as the representatives head to the negotiating table.
Putin’s threats to Europe
Putin has issued further warnings to Ukraine’s allies this week that aggression on their part would escalate the war.
Speaking at a marathon press conference that spanned almost four hours, the Russian leader on Friday said that any attempt to blockade Russia’s Kaliningrad enclave, located on the Baltic Sea, would result in an “unprecedented escalation” of the war in Ukraine.
Putin warned that this could expand into a “large-scale armed conflict” across Europe.
He later claimed that western leaders were using “dirty tricks” , adding: “They are creating the image of an enemy and they are making Russia the enemy.”
Meanwhile, EU leaders have agreed a €90bn loan to Ukraine. This came after a decision not to use frozen Russian assets to fund the war effort.
EU members recently agreed to immobilise €210bn of assets originally frozen in February 2022, when Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine, but some raised legal concerns about handing this cash to Kyiv.
Vladimir Putin attended an annual televised question-and-answer session and year-end news conference on 19 December (Photo: Sefa Karacan/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Putin accused the European Union of attempting “daylight robbery” of Russian assets and declared that it was on Ukraine and Europe to end the deadly conflict.
“The ball is entirely in the court of our Western opponents, primarily the leaders of the Kyiv regime, and in this case, first and foremost, their European sponsors. We are ready for both negotiations and a peaceful resolution to the conflict”, he said.
Ukraine contends that Russia – the aggressor which started the conflict by sending in tens of thousands of troops – is not serious about a peace deal.
Volodymyr Zelensky has long called for a ceasefire but wants to ensure the long-term security of Ukraine.
Odessa strike
The talks come as Russia continues its attack on Ukrainian infrastructure. Late on Friday night, a missile strike on an Odessa port left eight dead and dozens injured.
Ukraine’s Emergency Service said that some of the wounded had been on a bus at the site of the strike.
27 people were treated for injuries and trucks and cars caught fire after the impact.
The Russian Defense Ministry said on Saturday morning that over the previous day, it had struck unspecified “transport and storage infrastructure used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” along with energy facilities and those supplying Kyiv’s war effort.
A truck burns at the site of a Russian missile and drone strike in Ukraine’s Odesa region (Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Odesa region/via Reuters)
Ukraine strikes shadow fleet
Ukraine have focused their war efforts in recent weeks on striking oil tankers from Russia’s shadow fleet.
The shadow fleet helps Russia evade sanctions placed on oil by the West, and it is this new network of clandestine oil and gas tankers that helps fund the war effort.
On Thursday night, aerial drones targeted a ship in the Mediterranean Sea, more than 1,200 miles away from Ukraine.
Three others, located in the Black Sea, were hit by sea drones, and Ukraine’s security agency have acknowledged four attacks on Russian oil production platforms in the Caspian Sea in the past ten days.
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The move marks an escalation of the war at sea and show Ukraine’s new tactics to target Russia’s war economy.
Talks expected to escalate over Christmas
Peace talks are expected to accelerate over the Christmas period.
One Western official hinted that the coming fortnight could yield a diplomatic breakthrough, while another defence insider said that it “definitely feels like this could accelerate over Christmas”.
UK Defence Secretary John Healey said this week that there were “signals of a progress in the peace talks, which is further advanced than at any time during this war”. Following crunch talks in Berlin, US officials said on Monday that they had resolved “90 per cent” of the sticking points between Russia and Ukraine.