President Donald Trump says Ukraine and Russia are “closer than ever before” to a peace deal, but he acknowledged negotiations could still break down and leave the war dragging on for years.

After a two-hour meeting in Florida with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump conceded “one or two tough” issues – over territory and how the war might end – still needed to be resolved, an indication of progress made but no breakthrough.

Earlier Trump had what he described as an “excellent” two-and-a-half-hour phone conversation with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.

Trump says Ukraine peace deal ‘closer than ever’ after meeting with Zelenskyy

Donald Trump admitted “thorny” questions over the future of the eastern Donbas region have yet to be resolved, after meeting on Sunday with Zelenskyy.

Trump said a draft agreement to end the war was nearly “95% done”. “I really think we are closer than ever with both sides,” he said, adding that Putin also wants to “see it happen”.