Specifically, speaking at the White House, he said, “We are very close to a deal on Ukraine.”

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said today that Kyiv is ready to proceed with a U.S.-backed peace agreement and that he is prepared to discuss its sensitive points with the U.S. President in talks that, he said, should include European allies.

In a speech to the so-called Alliance of the Willing—a copy of which was seen by Reuters—Zelensky urged European leaders to establish a framework for deploying a “guarantee force” in Ukraine and to continue supporting Kyiv as long as Moscow shows no willingness to end its war.

At the same time, Emmanuel Macron, opening today’s virtual meeting of the “Coalition of the Willing” supporting Kyiv—which U.S. Secretary of State Mark Rubio also attended—said, according to French media, that “there is finally an opportunity to make real progress towards a lasting peace” between Ukraine and Russia. According to the French president, “an absolute prerequisite for lasting peace” is to provide Ukraine with “very strong security guarantees, not just guarantees on paper.”

“Ukraine has so far received many promises that were broken due to successive Russian attacks, so strong guarantees are essential,” Macron said.

“Negotiations have gained new momentum, and we must take advantage of this,” Macron added, noting that meetings in Geneva on November 23 enabled open and constructive dialogue between Ukraine and the United States.