US envoys arrive in Berlin for another round of Ukraine peace talks
US envoys have arrived in Berlin for another round of talks intended to secure a deal to end the war in Ukraine.
American president Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Mr Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner were spotted in central Berlin by a photographer for German news agency dpa.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukrainian, US and European officials would hold a series of meetings in Berlin in the coming days.
“Most importantly, I will be meeting with envoys of President Trump, and there will also be meetings with our European partners, with many leaders, concerning the foundation of peace — a political agreement to end the war,” Mr Zelensky said in an address to the nation late on Saturday.
Washington has tried for months to navigate the demands of each side as Mr Trump presses for a swift end to Russia’s war and grows increasingly exasperated by delays.
The search for possible compromises has run into major obstacles, including control of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, which is mostly occupied by Russian forces, and security guarantees for Ukraine.
“The chance is considerable at this moment, and it matters for our every city, for our every Ukrainian community,” Mr Zelensky said.
“We are working to ensure that peace for Ukraine is dignified, and to secure a guarantee — a guarantee, above all — that Russia will not return to Ukraine for a third invasion.”
Russian president Vladimir Putin has demanded that Ukraine withdraw its forces from the part of the Donetsk region still under its control and abandon its bid to join Nato among the key conditions for peace — demands Kyiv has rejected.
Mr Putin’s foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov told the business daily Kommersant that Russian police and national guard troops would stay in parts of eastern Ukraine’s Donbas even if they become a demilitarised zone under a prospective peace plan — a demand likely to be rejected by Ukraine as US-led negotiations drag on.
Mr Ushakov warned that a search for compromise could take a long time, noting that the US proposals that took into account Russian demands had been “worsened” by alterations proposed by Ukraine and its European allies.
“We don’t know what changes they are making, but clearly they aren’t for the better,” Mr Ushakov said.
“We will strongly insist on our considerations.”
German chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has spearheaded European efforts to support Ukraine alongside French president Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, said on Saturday that “the decades of the ‘Pax Americana’ are largely over for us in Europe and for us in Germany as well”.
He warned that Mr Putin’s aim was “a fundamental change to the borders in Europe, the restoration of the old Soviet Union within its borders”.
“If Ukraine falls, he won’t stop,” Mr Merz warned on Saturday during a party conference in Munich.
Mr Putin has denied plans to restore the Soviet Union or attack any European allies.
As peace efforts continued, Russia and Ukraine exchanged another round of aerial attacks.
Ukraine’s air force said overnight that Russia launched ballistic missiles and 138 attack drones at Ukraine. In its daily report, the air force said 110 had been intercepted or downed but missile and drone hits were recorded at six locations.
Since yesterday, all our services have been working to restore electricity, heating, and water supply to the regions following Russian strikes on energy infrastructure. The situation remains difficult – hundreds of thousands of families are still without electricity in Mykolaiv,… pic.twitter.com/vZotX4Zxal
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 14, 2025
Mr Zelensky said on Sunday that hundreds of thousands of families were still without power in the south, east and north-east regions and that work was continuing to restore electricity, heat and water to multiple regions following a large-scale attack the previous night.
The Ukrainian president said that in the past week, Russia had launched more than 1,500 strike drones, nearly 900 guided aerial bombs and 46 missiles of various types at Ukraine.
“Ukraine needs peace on decent terms, and we are ready to work as constructively as possible. These days will be filled with diplomacy. It’s very important that it brings results,” Mr Zelensky said.
Russia’s defence ministry said that air defences had downed 235 Ukrainian drones late on Saturday and early on Sunday.
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