Despite U.S. Diplomatic Push, Ukraine Peace Still a Long Way Off

Despite ongoing diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine, core disputes over territory, security guarantees and frozen assets remain unresolved. As a result, negotiations over the coming weeks are likely to continue with limited progress, though other outcomes could range from a fragile revised deal or a tenuous ceasefire to a complete collapse of talks. On Dec. 2, U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. While the Kremlin described the meeting as "very useful," the two sides failed to reach an agreement on a peace plan. Following the talks, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the talks had made "some progress, but we're not there yet." The meeting happened after international media leaked a peace plan drafted by U.S. and Russian officials, largely favorable to Moscow, in late November. A few days later, U.S. and Ukrainian delegations worked on...