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The Trump administration is pushing three immediate steps aimed at de-escalating Russia’s war against Ukraine and restarting diplomatic contacts with Moscow, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Axios on September 24.
The U.S. proposals include a mutual halt to strikes on energy infrastructure, reopening the Black Sea grain corridor and holding a trilateral meeting between the United States, Ukraine and Russia, potentially in Abu Dhabi.
Zelenskyy said the proposal for an energy ceasefire had come from Washington and that Ukraine was ready to accept it.
“On the table now there is a proposition: energy ceasefire. We are ready,” Zelenskyy said.
According to Zelenskyy, Washington also wants to restore the Black Sea grain corridor and resume direct diplomatic contacts involving all three countries. The U.S. has suggested first holding talks between technical teams rather than immediately arranging a leaders’ summit, with Abu Dhabi proposed as one possible venue.
“We are open — any country, any format,” Zelenskyy said.
Energy ceasefire remains uncertain
The proposals come as Russia and Ukraine continue to carry out attacks against each other’s energy infrastructure.
Zelenskyy said he discussed the proposed energy truce with Trump during their meeting in New York on September 22 and indicated that Ukraine was prepared to support a reciprocal arrangement.
However, Axios reported that it remains unclear whether Russian President Vladimir Putin is prepared to accept an energy ceasefire or return to high-level negotiations. The Kremlin said on September 24 that conditions were not currently in place for renewed peace talks and that there was no immediate prospect of a leaders-level meeting.
Zelenskyy said he would prefer a trilateral leaders’ meeting and suggested that an energy ceasefire could be one of its first concrete outcomes.
Washington seeks to revive negotiations
The latest U.S. initiative follows several weeks of renewed diplomatic activity. CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Moscow in late August, followed by meetings involving Trump’s special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and Russian and Ukrainian officials.
Zelenskyy said the U.S. envoys remained optimistic after their meetings with Putin but that he continued to doubt whether the Russian leader was genuinely ready to move toward an agreement.
The Ukrainian president also said he had discussed the ceasefire effort with the leaders of Türkiye, India, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt. According to Zelenskyy, those countries are also maintaining contacts with Russia on the issue of reopening the grain corridor.
The initiative comes amid continued heavy Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukraine, as Washington seeks practical measures that could reduce the intensity of the fighting and create conditions for broader negotiations.
