In the days leading up to the new year, President Donald Trump is reportedly preparing to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky again to discuss peaceful resolutions to the foreign nations’ respective conflicts.
The White House is seeking to make progress in solidifying the next phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and finalizing the Russia-Ukraine peace plan.
Trump plans to meet with Zelensky on Sunday and Netanyahu on Monday, according to Axios. Both leaders are expected to be hosted at the president’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
Zelensky told reporters he and Trump will discuss security guarantees, which have been a sticking point during negotiations, during their meeting Sunday, according to the Associated Press.
“We are not losing a single day,” he said Friday on X. “We have agreed on a meeting at the highest level – with President Trump in the near future. A lot can be decided before the New Year.”
Zelensky previously noted Ukrainian negotiators took part in a “very good conversation” with Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner on Christmas, suggesting a breakthrough in the peace process could be imminent.
A comprehensive peace deal has been met with significant resistance from Russia, which continues to launch aerial attacks against Ukraine and its energy infrastructure. Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the last set of drone strikes against Ukraine on Christmas Eve, heading into Christmas Day. The attack was met with severe criticism from bipartisan U.S. lawmakers in a joint statement.
Zelensky reiterated that Ukraine is committed to ending “this brutal Russian war” and to ensuring “all documents and steps are realistic, effective, and reliable.” A 20-point framework document is close to being finalized.
Netanyahu has not publicly commented on his reported Mar-a-Lago visit, but earlier this month, he did suggest to Trump the idea of holding another meeting over the holiday period. The planned meeting is set to address specific details in the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire involving a potential Palestinian technocratic government and International Stabilization Force.
Trump hopes to follow the meeting with announcements related to the Gaza ceasefire in January 2026. White House officials told Axios he is considering convening the Board of Peace at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where the WEF’s annual gathering will take place from Jan. 19 to 23.
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Progress was made in the Gaza peace process when Witkoff and Kushner, both of whom represent the United States, met in Miami with the Qatari prime minister, Egyptian intelligence head, and Turkish foreign minister to discuss next steps. All four nations are official guarantors of the peace deal. They successfully mediated the agreement in October, leading to the current state of the fragile truce.
The Trump administration is reportedly frustrated with Netanyahu over Israel’s alleged ceasefire violations, including a strike that eliminated a senior Hamas military commander this month. The Israeli government did not notify the U.S. of the strike in advance. The military action came in response to a Hamas-led attack in which an explosive device wounded two Israeli soldiers.
