Zelensky-Trump Sunday summit: inside the room where Ukraine's fate may be decided

Inside the room: Zelensky and Trump set for Sunday showdown in Florida

Florida, Saturday evening – The palm-lined driveway of Mar-a-Lago is unusually quiet tonight, but behind the gates a high-stakes diplomatic drama is about to unfold. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to arrive in Florida on Sunday morning for what may be the most consequential meeting of his presidency so far: a face-to-face with former U.S. President Donald Trump.

Sources close to both camps tell me the talks are not scripted. There is no joint statement drafted, no pre-cooked communiqué waiting for the cameras. Instead, two men who have never met will sit across a table and try to hammer out a path that could either freeze the war in Ukraine or open the door to a wider conflict.

What’s at stake

The stakes could not be higher. Zelensky carries with him a mandate from a country under daily bombardment; Trump, fresh from a sweeping primary victory, is auditioning for the role of global peacemaker. The questions hanging over the table are stark: Will Trump press Zelensky to accept a ceasefire that leaves Crimea and the Donbas in Russian hands? Will Zelensky gamble his country’s sovereignty for a promise of U.S. security guarantees that may not survive the next election cycle?

“We are not looking for a photo opportunity,” a senior Ukrainian official told me on condition of anonymity. “We are looking for a commitment that the next American president will not sell us out to Putin for a cheap headline.”

There is, of course, the question of whether the man who once withheld military aid to Ukraine is the right person to negotiate the terms of its survival. But the Zelensky camp is clear-eyed about the politics. They are here because they have to be, not because they want to be.

What we know

• The meeting is set for Sunday morning, with a working lunch expected to run into the evening.
• Trump’s team says he will not be bringing a prepared peace plan, but will instead listen first.
• Zelensky’s delegation includes his top national security adviser and the foreign minister.
• Security will be provided by the Secret Service and the Palm Beach Sheriff's Office.

What we don't know is whether the two men, who have never met, can find a way to bridge the gulf between what Ukraine needs to survive and what Trump's vision of 'America First' will allow. The world will be watching Sunday to see if the room can produce more than a handshake for the cameras.

As I write this, the sun is just coming up over the Atlantic. In a few hours, the fate of a nation and the reputation of a former president may be decided in a private dining room in Florida. The stakes could not be higher, and the margin for error could not be smaller.

Follow our live updates from Mar-a-Lago as the day unfolds.