Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he is ready to sit down with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G20 summit in Miami this December.

There is one major catch: Moscow is already pushing back on the idea of holding that meeting on American soil.

The possible showdown would unfold at a summit hosted by President Trump, whose administration has spent months pressing both sides toward negotiations to end the war.

Video from the interview captured Zelensky making the offer in direct terms:

Deutsche Welle reported that Zelensky would travel to Miami if Putin attends and both leaders receive invitations. Asked whether he would go, meet Putin and speak with him, Zelensky answered yes.

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He said the substance of the encounter would be more important than the words exchanged in front of cameras. His message was blunt: outcomes, not speeches, are what would make such a meeting worthwhile.

Zelensky also argued that Ukraine now approaches negotiations from a stronger position than it held a year ago. He pointed to heavy Russian battlefield losses and suggested that an energy and grain ceasefire could serve as an opening step toward a broader agreement.

The G20 leaders are scheduled to gather in Miami on December 14 and 15. The United States has indicated that Putin will be invited, although the Kremlin has not confirmed that he will attend.

The proposed face-to-face meeting immediately drew international attention:

The Associated Press reported that Putin foreign-policy adviser Yuri Ushakov said the Russian leader’s attendance at the Miami summit has not yet been discussed.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov then rejected the Miami meeting itself. He repeated Moscow’s standing position that Zelensky could travel to Russia if he wants to meet Putin.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia remains ready for negotiations, but he also made clear that Moscow would not pause its military campaign while talks are underway.

That response leaves a wide gap between the two sides. Zelensky is proposing a meeting in the United States at a major international summit, while the Kremlin insists that any direct encounter must take place in Moscow.

A short video report laid out the Kremlin’s rejection and its demand that the meeting happen in the Russian capital:

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The diplomatic backdrop matters. President Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner recently traveled to Moscow and Kyiv as Washington worked to restart negotiations.

The official website of the President of Ukraine said Zelensky met with the American envoys in Kyiv on September 6 and thanked President Trump for his efforts to revive the negotiating process.

Zelensky said Ukraine, Europe and the United States had agreed to meet again soon. He described the renewed contact as important and said Kyiv was prepared to keep working on steps that could bring the war to an end.

The Miami summit could give President Trump a rare opportunity to bring both leaders into the same place under American leadership.

For now, Zelensky has publicly opened the door. Putin has not committed to attending, and the Kremlin says Miami is off the table.

That means the next move belongs to Moscow. If Putin comes to President Trump’s G20 summit, the pressure to explain why he will not meet Zelensky will be impossible to avoid.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport. View the original article here.

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