KYIV, Ukraine, Dec 8, (AP): US President Donald Trump on Sunday claimed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "isn't ready” to sign off on a US-authored peace proposal aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war. Trump was critical of Zelenskyy after US and Ukrainian negotiators completed three days of talks on Saturday aimed at trying to narrow differences on the US administration's proposal.

But in an exchange with reporters on Sunday night, Trump suggested that the Ukrainian leader is holding up the talks from moving forward. "I’m a little bit disappointed that President Zelenskyy hasn’t yet read the proposal, that was as of a few hours ago. His people love it, but he hasn’t,” Trump claimed in an exchange with reporters before taking part in the Kennedy Center Honors.

The president added, "Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I’m not sure that Zelenskyy’s fine with it. His people love it it. But he isn’t ready.” To be certain, Russian President Vladimir Putin hasn't publicly expressed approval for the White House plan. In fact, Putin last week had said that aspects of Trump's proposal were unworkable, even though the original draft heavily favored Moscow.

Trump has had a hot-and-cold relationship with Zelenskyy since riding into a second White House term insisting that the war was a waste of US taxpayer money. Trump has also repeatedly urged the Ukrainians to cede land to Russia to bring an end to a now nearly four-year conflict he says has cost far too many lives. Zelenskyy said Saturday he had a "substantive phone call” with the American officials engaged in the talks with a Ukrainian delegation in Florida.

He said he had been given an update over the phone by US and Ukrainian officials at the talks. "Ukraine is determined to keep working in good faith with the American side to genuinely achieve peace,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media. Trump's criticism of Zelenskyy came as Russia on Sunday welcomed the Trump administration’s new national security strategy in comments by the Kremlin spokesman published by Russia’s Tass news agency. Dmitry Peskov said the updated strategic document, which spells out the administration's core foreign policy interests, was largely in line with Moscow’s vision.