Trump predicts ‘something good’ in Ukraine-Russia peace talks

LONDON — At least four people were killed and 17 injured in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv in what the local mayor called a “massive” Russian drone attack on Sunday night.

“Every night and every day brings new challenges for our city, new destruction and new jobs,” Mayor Ihor Terekhov said in a post on Telegram.

Kharkiv was among the targets of Russia’s latest overnight attack, in which Ukraine’s air force said 162 drones were launched into the country. Air defenses shot down or suppressed 125 drones, the air force said, and 37 craft hit 15 locations.

“The greatest damage was suffered by civilian infrastructure and private homes in the Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions,” the air force said in a post on Telegram. “Unfortunately there are civilian victims.”

Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry said its forces shot down at least 103 Ukrainian drones overnight and Monday afternoon. Four drones were shot down over the Moscow region, two of them heading towards the capital, the ministry reported.

The latest exchange of attacks came as American, European and Ukrainian officials met in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss the controversial 28-point American peace plan proposal presented to kyiv last week, the terms of which critics say would constitute a Ukrainian capitulation.

On Monday morning, US President Donald Trump hinted that progress was being made. “Is it really possible that great progress is being made in peace talks between Russia and Ukraine???” he wrote on social media.

“Don’t believe it until you see it, but something good may be happening,” Trump added.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday that the talks were “probably the most productive and meaningful meeting we’ve had so far in this entire process since we got involved.”

Rubio told reporters that the presidents of both countries would have to approve any framework, but said he was “comfortable” that would be the case.

“We are making some changes and adjustments in hopes of further narrowing the gap and getting closer to an outcome that both Ukraine and the United States can feel comfortable with,” Rubio said.

Rubio said later Sunday that all sides had made “great progress” on a potential peace deal with Russia. He also said the deadline for the parties to reach an agreement is “as soon as possible” and that the process could extend beyond the Thanksgiving deadline set by Trump.

“It evolved. This is a work, it is a living document that breathes every day with contributions, it changes,” he said of the proposal.

Trump told reporters Saturday that there is room for more negotiations. When asked by reporters if the 28-point plan was his final offer, Trump responded: “No.” And he added: “One way or another we will end this.”

But on Sunday, the president criticized Ukraine and its European backers, saying that “the Ukrainian ‘leadership’ has not expressed any gratitude for our efforts” and noting that “Europe continues to buy oil from Russia.”

Asked later Sunday if the president still considered the Ukrainians “ungrateful,” Rubio said he believed Trump was now “pretty satisfied” with the progress at the negotiating table.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post on Sunday that his delegation in Geneva “held a series of meetings, with the American side and also with our European partners.”

“The delegation just reported on the results of their discussions, and they were substantial conversations. Many things are changing: we are working very carefully on the steps necessary to end the war,” Zelenskyy added.

“It is important that there is a dialogue with US representatives and that there are signs that President Trump’s team is listening to us,” Zelenskyy wrote.

Speaking at a forum in Stockholm, Sweden, on Monday, the president said kyiv “will continue to work with partners, especially the United States, and seek commitments that strengthen, but not weaken.” us. And we will continue to explain how dangerous it is to pretend that aggression is something you can just ignore and move on.”

In talks with the United States so far, Zelenskyy added, “we have managed to keep extremely sensitive points on the table, including the full release of all Ukrainian prisoners of war under the free-for-all and civilian formula, and the full return of Ukrainian children kidnapped by Russia. These are important steps, but to achieve real peace, more, more is needed.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday that Russia “has not yet received anything official” about the results of the Geneva talks.

“Of course, we are closely following media reports, which have been abundant in recent days, including from Geneva,” Peskov said.

“We haven’t seen any plans yet,” Peskov continued. “We have read the statement after the talks in Geneva. Some adjustments have been made to the text that we saw before. We are going to wait. Apparently the dialogue is still there and some contacts will continue. So far, I repeat, we have not received anything officially.”

On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during a meeting of his Security Council that the Kremlin had received the new 28-point US proposal. “I think it could also form the basis for a final peace agreement, but this text has not been discussed with us in detail,” Putin said.

“I think the reason is the same: the American administration has not yet managed to achieve the agreement from the Ukrainian side, since Ukraine is opposed to it,” Putin added. “Apparently, Ukraine and its European allies still have the illusion that they can inflict strategic defeat on Russia on the battlefield.”

ABC News’ Joseph Simonetti contributed to this report.