Trump 'Disappointed' Zelensky Hasn't Read Peace Proposal Yet

UPDATE Dec 8, 2025 1:00 AM CST

The Associated Press on Monday corrected its earlier version of a story regarding President Trump's Sunday comments about his Ukrainian counterpart. The AP says its original article "erroneously reported that Trump said Ukrainian President Zelensky wasn't ready to accept the [peace proposal] document. In fact, he said Zelensky hadn't yet read it." The original version of the article follows.

Dec 8, 2025 1:00 AM CST

President Trump on Sunday claimed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky "isn't ready" to sign off on a US-authored peace proposal aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war, the AP reports. Trump was critical of Zelensky after US and Ukrainian negotiators completed three days of talks on Saturday aimed at trying to narrow differences on the US administration's proposal. But in an exchange with reporters on Sunday night, Trump suggested that the Ukrainian leader is holding up the talks from moving forward. "I'm a little bit disappointed that President Zelensky hasn't yet read the proposal, that was as of a few hours ago. His people love it, but he hasn't," Trump claimed in an exchange with reporters before taking part in the Kennedy Center Honors. The president added, "Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I'm not sure that Zelensky's fine with it. His people love it it. But he isn't ready."

To be certain, Russian President Vladimir Putin hasn't publicly expressed approval for the White House plan. In fact, Putin last week had said that aspects of Trump's proposal were unworkable, even though the original draft heavily favored Moscow. Trump has had a hot-and-cold relationship with Zelensky since riding into a second White House term insisting that the war was a waste of US taxpayer money. Trump has also repeatedly urged the Ukrainians to cede land to Russia to bring an end to a now nearly four-year conflict he says has cost far too many lives. Zelensky said Saturday he had a "substantive phone call" with the American officials engaged in the talks with a Ukrainian delegation in Florida. He said he had been given an update over the phone by US and Ukrainian officials at the talks. "Ukraine is determined to keep working in good faith with the American side to genuinely achieve peace," Zelensky wrote on social media.