The United States just wrapped up two days of talks with Ukrainian and European negotiators in Berlin, followed by more discussions among leaders in Europe – all of which ended with positive signals about a future peace agreement.

It comes as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky ruled out a ceasefire by Christmas, saying Russia is likely to reject a new European-backed peace proposal and that Ukraine must be ready to continue fighting.

Ukraine and the US are due to hold a second day of talks in Berlin on a plan aimed at ending Russia’s war, with allied security guarantees for Kyiv a central focus of the negotiations.

US and Ukrainian negotiators will again meet for high-stakes peace talks -- this time in Berlin -- as disagreements persist over territorial control and security guarantees and as Russia intensifies attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure sites.

Germany will host U.S. and Ukrainian delegations over the weekend for talks on a ceasefire in Ukraine, before a summit with European leaders and President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Berlin on Monday, a German official said.

A double improvised explosive device (IED) blast in Kyiv on Thursday killed a serviceman and wounded four others, including two police officers, city prosecutors said. Meanwhile, the US is pushing

Putin’s aide calls meeting with Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and senior adviser Jared Kushner 'productive' - Anadolu Ajansı

Ukrainian officials are expected to present new peace proposals to U.S. negotiators Wednesday. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says this comes ahead of urgent talks on Thursday with leaders from about 30 countries supporting Ukraine’s efforts to end Russia's nearly 4-year-old full-scale invasion.