The latest round of negotiations held in Florida between U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators, as well as U.S. and Russian representatives, has been hailed as "productive," though significant challenges and differences remain.

'Productive talks'

After meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin's special envoy Kirill Dmitriev on Saturday, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump adviser Jared Kushner met on Sunday with officials from Ukraine and Europe, and then separately with the Ukrainian delegation, led by senior official Rustem Umerov.

In a social media post, Witkoff called Sunday's talks "productive and constructive" and focused on a "shared strategic approach between Ukraine, the United States and Europe."

He said the U.S.-Ukraine meeting focused on four key points: further development of the U.S.-drafted 20-point plan, a multilateral security guarantee framework, a U.S. security guarantee framework for Ukraine, and further development on economics and prosperity to rebuild the country, adding that negotiators focused especially on "timelines" and "sequencing of next steps."

Umerov reiterated Ukraine's commitment to achieving a just and sustainable peace, saying the country's "shared priority is to stop the killing, ensure guaranteed security, and create conditions for Ukraine's recovery, stability, and long-term prosperity." He added that "peace must be not only a cessation of hostilities, but also a dignified foundation for a stable future," and that Ukraine will continue "close coordination" with the U.S. and Europe in the next stages.

In a separate X post, Witkoff also described his talks with Dmitriev as "productive and constructive."

"Russia remains fully committed to achieving peace in Ukraine," Witkoff said in the post. "Russia highly values the efforts and support of the United States to resolve the Ukrainian conflict and re-establish global security."

Echoing Witkoff, Dmitriev noted that the discussions "are proceeding constructively."

Differences and challenges remain

However, challenges remain. Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said on Sunday that Ukrainian and European input into the peace proposals under discussion had not improved the prospects for peace, but added that Dmitriev was scheduled to return to Moscow on Monday and would report to Putin on the outcome of his talks.

"After that, we will formulate the position with which we will proceed, including in our contacts with the Americans," Ushakov said.

The meetings in Florida were the latest in a series of talks between the U.S., Russia and Ukraine on the 20-point plan to end the nearly four-year-old conflict.

U.S. President Donald Trump has been pressuring Ukraine and Russia to come to an agreement on ending the conflict as soon as possible, but Russia wants to keep the Ukrainian areas it has seized, while Kyiv has refused to cede ground.

Regarding the series of intense diplomatic contacts, experts caution that it is still unclear whether a breakthrough will be achieved.

Su Xiaohui, associate research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies, said the Russia-U.S. discussions were mainly technical in nature, with the expectation that not all issues would be resolved in one round of talks.

Su stated that a "peace plan" is unlikely to be achieved in the short term, as territorial sovereignty remains a core issue and there are fundamental differences between U.S. and Russian strategic goals: the U.S. seeks short-term progress to disengage from the conflict, while Russia aims for a fundamental resolution of its issues with the West.

While Ukraine may be open to some compromises, Su emphasized that the core disputes between Russia and Ukraine remain unresolved, suggesting that true peace is still a long way off.

(With input from agencies)