Zelensky meets Carney in Canada ahead of Trump talks in Florida on Ukraine war
Ukrainian president seeks security guarantees and territorial resolution as he stops in Ottawa before Florida summit.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met Prime Minister Mark Carney in Canada on Saturday before flying to Florida for talks with Donald Trump on ending the nearly four-year war with Russia.
Canada has been a steadfast supporter of Ukraine since the invasion began, providing military aid and humanitarian assistance. The meeting with Carney underscores Canada's role in the international coalition backing Kyiv. Any peace deal shaped in Florida will have direct implications for Canadian foreign policy and defence commitments.
Ukrainian president Mr Zelensky said security guarantees and territorial issues in the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions would be among the topics of discussion. He told reporters he would aim to ensure there were "as few unresolved issues as possible" in talks with his US counterpart Mr Trump, while respecting Ukraine's red lines.
Mr Zelensky has said the draft peace plan includes a US commitment to provide guarantees mirroring the NATO alliance's Article 5, which means an attack on Ukraine would trigger a collective military response from the US and its allies. But key details are still to be worked out, with territorial concessions the most sensitive of the issues the two leaders will discuss.
A day ahead of the talks, Russia attacked Kyiv with missiles and drones, killing at least one person in an attack Mr Zelensky said "really shows that (Russian president Vladimir Putin) doesn't want peace". The talks in Florida are the latest stage in Mr Trump's year-long effort to secure a ceasefire in Ukraine, having previously said he would end the war on the first day of his term in office.
On Christmas Eve, Mr Zelensky said the US and Ukraine had reached a consensus on a number of critical issues, and indicated he was open to creating a demilitarised zone on his country's eastern border with Russia. But he has continued to resist Russian demands that Ukraine give up two of its eastern regions, Luhansk and Donetsk.
Russia is also likely to object to a role for NATO forces in monitoring a ceasefire, which European leaders including Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and French president Emmanuel Macron have said must form part of any deal. Mr Zelensky has said a peace plan is "about 90% ready" and that he hopes to discuss an "economic agreement" and "territorial issues" with Mr Trump. He said he hoped European leaders could also be involved in talks either on Sunday or at a future date.