Rubio, Kushner and Witkoff Meet Ukrainian Delegation in Florida to Push Final Peace Framework After Yermak’s Resignation

Senator Marco Rubio, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with Ukrainian negotiators in Florida on Sunday to advance a Geneva-based peace framework and iron out remaining technical details following last week’s talks.

In brief opening remarks, Rubio emphasized that the goal goes beyond merely ending active hostilities: “The end goal is obviously not just the end of the war. Obviously, that's essential and fundamental. We want to see the end of the killing and the death and the suffering… They want peace. But it's also about securing an end to the war that leaves Ukraine sovereign and independent and with an opportunity at real prosperity.”

Rustem Umerov, who has taken over as head of the Ukrainian delegation and serves as secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, thanked the U.S. participants and said he expected a productive meeting focused on Ukraine’s priorities and sovereignty.

The Florida session followed the resignation of Andriy Yermak, Ukraine’s chief negotiator, after an anti-corruption raid on his home. Ukrainian investigators are probing an alleged $100 million kickback scheme linked to the state-owned nuclear operator Energoatom.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reiterated that diplomacy will continue and that talks based on the Geneva points remain active. “The dialogue based on the Geneva points will continue. Diplomacy remains active. The American side is demonstrating a constructive approach, and in the coming days it is feasible to flesh out the steps to determine how to bring the war to a dignified end,” he said, adding that the Ukrainian delegation has clear directives and priorities.

A U.S. official said Kyiv has agreed to the framework in principle, with only a few technical points remaining. Officials involved say the framework has been condensed from an earlier 28 points to about 19 items intended to be discussed further.

Witkoff is expected to travel to Moscow this week to present and negotiate the revised framework. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned that Moscow could reject the plan if it departs from the “spirit and letter” of prior understandings reached at a summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, saying the situation would become “fundamentally different” if key terms were ignored.

Moscow has insisted on maximalist demands in talks, including a prohibition on Ukraine joining NATO and ceding remaining territory in the Donbas. Despite ongoing diplomacy, Russian forces have continued drone and missile strikes: President Zelenskyy reported that over the past week Russia launched nearly 1,400 attack drones, 1,100 guided aerial bombs and 66 missiles, and recent strikes have killed civilians, including fatalities in Kyiv.

The Florida meeting underscores a renewed international push to finalize a negotiated framework, even as political turbulence in Kyiv and hardened positions in Moscow complicate prospects for a durable settlement.