Kiev, Dec 1: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Rustem Umerov as the new head of the Ukrainian delegation to peace talks with the United States, other Ukrainian partners and Russia, local media reported.Umerov, Ukraine’s secretary of national security and defense council, replaces Andriy Yermak in the post, Xinhua news agency reported.
In a statement on social media platform X, Zelensky said the Ukrainian team led by Umerov has departed for the United States to discuss ways to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict. “Rustem delivered a report today, and the task is clear: to swiftly and substantively work out the steps needed to end the war,” Zelensky said.
On Friday, Yermak resigned after anti-corruption authorities searched his home as part of an investigation.
The previous talks between Ukrainian and US delegations were held in Geneva, Switzerland, on November 23.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump said that his peace plan has been “fine-tuned” with inputs from the two countries, and he is sending envoys to the leaders of Russia and Ukraine to finalise a deal.
“There are only a few remaining points of disagreement” over the 28-point plan drafted by the US after it was fine-tuned, Trump said on Truth Social on Tuesday.
“In the hopes of finalising this Peace Plan, I have directed my Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with President [Vladimir] Putin in Moscow and, at the same time, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll will be meeting with the Ukrainians”, he wrote.
He said that he was looking forward to meeting with Putin and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, “but only when the deal to end this War is FINAL or, in its final stages”.
Trump had said he was setting a Thanksgiving Day deadline – Thursday when the feast is observed in the US – for Ukraine to agree to the deal, but has since said he was open to extending it if there was progress.
The war, which, according to Trump, claimed the lives of 25,000 soldiers last month, continued to rage with Russia hitting Kyiv with missiles and drones on Tuesday.