U.S.-Ukraine ceasefire talks…Rubio "Productive but much to do"

High-level U.S. and Ukrainian officials resumed talks on a plan to end the war in Ukraine on the 30th (local time) in Hallandale Beach, Florida, a week after they last met.

U.S. attendees included Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Steve Witkoff, Donald Trump's special envoy, and President Trump's eldest son-in-law Jared Kushner. The Ukrainian delegation was led by Rustem Umerov, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council.

After the talks, Rubio met with reporters alongside Secretary Umerov and described the talks as "productive," while noting "there is much more to do going forward." He emphasized, "It's not just about ending the war, but about securing a future for Ukraine that we hope will be more prosperous than ever before."

Earlier, as he opened the talks, Rubio said in his opening remarks, "It's not just about ending the war. Ukraine must become an independent, sovereign country that never experiences war again, and we must find mechanisms and ways to create tremendous prosperity for its people," adding, "It's not only about rebuilding the country but entering an era of remarkable economic progress."

He also stated, "Ukraine has enormous economic potential and tremendous opportunities for genuine prosperity," adding, "It is clear that this is impossible during the war, and a ceasefire alone cannot achieve this. Therefore, this is not a simple peace negotiation. It is about creating a path for Ukraine's sovereignty, independence, and prosperity."

Secretary Umerov also announced the start of negotiations with the U.S. on his X (formerly Twitter), saying, "I maintain continuous contact with (Volodymyr Zelenskyy) the President of Ukraine. Our goal is a prosperous and strong Ukraine," and emphasized, "We are working to secure true peace for Ukraine and reliable, long-term security guarantees."

After the talks, he told reporters, "We discussed Ukraine's future and all major issues important to Ukraine and the Ukrainian people," and said, "We already had a successful meeting in Geneva (November 23), and today we followed up on that success," adding, "For now, this meeting was productive and successful."

In Geneva, the United States and Ukraine discussed a 28-clause ceasefire proposal that had been criticized as overly favorable to Russia and reportedly streamlined it into 19 clauses reflecting Ukraine's position. This meeting was held just before Envoy Witkoff is set to depart for Moscow next week to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, drawing attention to whether the two sides would reflect Ukraine's interests more and make agreements or amendments to the ceasefire proposal.

Oh Se-sung, Hankyung.com reporter sesung@hankyung.com