Zelensky says documents aimed at ending Ukraine war ‘nearly ready’ after Trump talks in Davos

U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. (file photo: REUTERS)

US President Donald Trump held a closed-door meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine entered what officials described as a critical phase.

According to CNN, the meeting lasted around an hour. The Ukrainian presidency confirmed the talks had concluded, with Zelensky’s communications adviser later describing it as a “good meeting”.

Speaking to reporters after the interaction, Trump said the discussions had gone well but cautioned that there was still “a ways to go” before the war with Russia could end. “The war has to end. We hope it’s going to end. There are a lot of people being killed,” Trump said.

Zelensky, addressing the forum later, said documents being drafted with Washington to end the nearly four-year-long Russian invasion were close to completion. “We met with President Trump, and our teams are working almost every day. It’s not simple. The documents aimed at ending this war are nearly, nearly ready,” he said.

The Ukrainian president also acknowledged that his engagement with Trump had its challenges. “My dialogue with President Trump is not simple,” Zelensky said, while stressing that the meeting had been “positive”.

The talks came amid signals that negotiations are narrowing. US envoy Steve Witkoff said discussions were “down to one issue”, which a European official told CNN was linked to territory. Trump indicated that his team would next engage Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of efforts to broker a ceasefire. “It’s an ongoing process. Everybody wants to have the war end,” he said.

On the sidelines of the Ukraine discussions, Trump also formally launched his ‘Board of Peace’ initiative at Davos, signing its founding charter and describing it as a major step towards global conflict resolution. Calling it a “very exciting day”, he said his administration was “settling eight wars” and claimed significant progress had been made towards ending the conflict in Ukraine.

Zelensky’s appearance in Davos followed Trump’s increasingly blunt comments on the prolonged war. “I believe they’re at a point now where they can come together and get a deal done,” Trump said, adding that failure to do so would reflect poorly on both sides.

*With ANI inputs