Zelenskyy says US peace plan 'looks better' with revisions but work continues

PARIS (AP) — Ukraine’s president spoke optimistically Monday about the progress of revising the Trump administration’s peace plan, saying “it looks better” and the work will continue during talks on how to end Russia’s nearly four-year war.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke after meeting with France’s president, the latest in discussions aimed at brokering the terms for a potential ceasefire in the largest armed conflict in Europe since World War II.

Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin would meet with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff on Tuesday. Witkoff’s role came under scrutiny last week following a report that he coached Putin’s foreign affairs adviser on how Russia’s leader should pitch to Trump on the Ukraine peace plan.

Zelenskyy’s visit to Paris followed Sunday’s meeting between Ukrainian and U.S. officials, which Secretary of State Marco Rubio described as productive. The two sides have worked to revise the proposed U.S.-authored plan that was developed in negotiations between Washington and Moscow but criticized as being too weighted toward Russian demands.

The Kremlin late Monday boasted of Russia’s battlefield gains ahead of the talks, claiming Moscow’s troops have captured the key city of Pokrovsk in the eastern Donetsk region. According to Peskov, Putin received a report about Pokrovsk's capture on Sunday.

Zelenskyy, however, said in Paris that fighting was still ongoing in Pokrovsk on Monday.

Zelenskyy called the topic of Ukraine’s control over its territories “the most complicated” in discussions over the plan.

French President Emmanuel Macron said talks are still in a “preliminary phase” but called the flurry of diplomatic activity “a moment that could be a turning point” for the future of peace in Ukraine and security in Europe.

After criticism from Ukraine and its European allies, President Donald Trump has downplayed his administration’s original 28-point peace framework, which would have imposed limits on the size of Ukraine’s military, blocked the country from joining NATO and required Ukraine to give up territory. He now calls it a “concept” to be “fine-tuned.”

The French leader said he wanted to praise the U.S. peace efforts but insisted that any peace plan can “only be finalized with Europeans around the table.”

Last week, Macron urged Western allies to bring “rock-solid” security guarantees to Ukraine in case a ceasefire or a peace deal is be reached. He has endorsed deploying a “reassurance force” on land, at sea and in the air to help ensure the country’s security.

The French president said Monday that the coming days will see “crucial discussions” between U.S. officials and Western partners, who would aim to clarify U.S. participation in security guarantees.

Macron's office said he and Zelenskyy held talks with other European partners including leaders from Britain, Germany, Poland, Italy, Norway, Finland, Denmark and the Netherlands. Also included were European Union officials Antonio Costa and Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.

Macron and Zelenskyy also had phone calls with Witkoff, Macron’s office said. Zelenskyy later on Monday arrived in Ireland.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas expressed concern that the U.S.-Russia talks might end up with Ukraine having to make more concessions, like being pressured to surrender territory.

“I’m afraid that all the pressure will be put on the victim,” Kallas told reporters in Brussels after chairing a meeting of EU foreign and defense ministers.

The Kremlin released footage of Putin in military fatigues, meeting with top military officials on Sunday evening at an unidentified military command post.

Russia’s General Staff chief, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, reported to Putin that the Russian troops have taken full control of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region — Russia uses the old Soviet name of the city, Krasnoarmeysk — and the city of Vovchansk in the Kharkiv region.

Col. Gen. Valery Solodchuk added that Russian forces were still battling “the remaining small enemy groups” in Pokrovsk.

There were no immediate comments from Ukrainian officials on the claim, which could not be independently verified.

Pokrovsk sits along the eastern front line in part of what has been dubbed the “fortress belt” of Donetsk. The line of heavily fortified cities is crucial to Ukraine’s defense of the region, including Kramatorsk, Sloviansk and Druzhkivka.

Speaking to reporters in Paris, Zelenskyy also rejected Russia's earlier claim of capturing the city of Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region. The Ukrainian leader said that Kyiv's troops “cleared out" almost all of Russian forces in Kupiansk.

In the footage, Putin insisted that the Russian troops “are increasing pressure along the entire front line” and “along the entire line of contact, the initiative is entirely in the hands of our Armed Forces.”

The Kremlin on Monday also condemned Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil infrastructure over the weekend, including an attack on an oil terminal owned by the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, or CPC, and another that targeted two tankers in Turkish waters.

A major oil terminal near the port of Novorossiysk halted operations Saturday after a strike by unmanned boats damaged one of its three mooring points, according to a statement from CPC, which owns the terminal. It came a day after Ukrainian naval drones struck two oil tankers in the Black Sea that were reported to be part of Russia’s “shadow fleet” that evade sanctions.

Ukraine confirmed on Saturday it carried out the attacks.

Peskov described both incidents as “outrageous" and noted of the CPC terminal that “we’re talking about an international facility.”

Meanwhile, Russia’s Ministry of Defense said Russian forces had destroyed 32 Ukrainian drones overnight. The drones were shot down over 11 Russian regions, as well as the Sea of Azov, the ministry said.

An apartment block was damaged during a Ukrainian attack on the city of Kaspiysk in Russia’s Dagestan region, local Gov. Sergei Melikov said. Located on the shore of the Caspian Sea close to Russia’s border with Azerbaijan, the city is more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the front line.

A Russian missile strike around midday Monday killed four people and wounded 40 others, 11 critically, in the eastern city of Dnipro, according to the head of regional administration Vladyslav Haivanenko.

The strike hit the city center, damaging four residential high-rises, an educational facility and the storage facility of a humanitarian organization, said Mayor Borys Filatov, adding that search and rescue operations were ongoing.

Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia had fired 89 strike and decoy drones overnight Sunday before the attack on Dnipro, of which 63 drones were shot down or jammed.

Overall in November, Russia fired 100 missiles of various types and 9,588 reconnaissance and strike drones into Ukraine, according to the Air Force’s monthly report published Monday.

Associated Press writers Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, Lorne Cook in Brussels and Dasha Litvinova in Tallinn, Estonia, contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and first lady Olena Zelenska arrive at Dublin Airport for his visit to Ireland, Monday, Dec. 1, 2025. (Clodagh Kilcoyne/Pool Photo via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy leave after a joint press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Monday, Dec 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena, Pool)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, emergency services personnel evacuate a local citizen wounded after a Russian missiles attack in Dnipro, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 1, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

This photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, shows damaged cars and debris after a Russian missiles attack in Dnipro, Ukraine, Monday, Dec. 1, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Monday, Dec. 1, 2025 before a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

A Ukrainian soldier goes along a street in the frontline town of Kostyantynivka, the site of heavy battles with the Russian troops in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, Friday, Nov. 28, 2025. (Oleg Petrasiuk/Ukraine's 24th Mechanized Brigade via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Monday, Dec. 1, 2025 before a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pose prior to a meeting, Monday, Dec. 1, 2025, at the Elysee Palace in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena, Pool)

French President Emmanuel Macron, left, welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Monday, Dec. 1, 2025 before a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Monday, Dec. 1, 2025 before a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

CHICAGO (AP) — Matthew Boyd struck out 10 while pitching into the sixth inning, and the Chicago Cubs beat the Los Angeles Angels 6-2 on Wednesday.

Nico Hoerner had three hits for Chicago on a chilly and windy afternoon at Wrigley Field. Matt Shaw had two hits and two RBIs, and Alex Bregman reached three times in the rubber game of the three-game series.

Boyd (1-1) allowed two runs, one earned, and two hits over 5 2/3 innings in his second start of the season. The left-hander was tagged for six runs in 3 2/3 innings in a 10-4 loss to Washington on opening day.

Zach Neto had two of the Angels' four hits. Yusei Kikuchi (0-1) was charged with five runs and six hits in 5 1/3 innings.

Chicago grabbed control with five runs in the third inning. Miguel Amaya walked and scored from first on Hoerner's double into the gap in left-center. Bregman singled in Hoerner, and Dansby Swanson drove in Ian Happ with a sacrifice fly. Shaw and Pete Crow-Armstrong contributed two-out RBI singles.

First-year Los Angeles manager Kurt Suzuki wanted a replay review of the play at the plate when Amaya scored but was denied by the umpires because he took too long to decide on the challenge.

The Angels chased Boyd while scoring two runs in the sixth. Jo Adell singled in Neto, and Mike Trout scampered home on an error on Bregman at third.

The Cubs tacked on an unearned run in the seventh. Trout dropped Carson Kelly's leadoff flyball to center for an error, and Kelly scored on Shaw's one-out single.

Angels: Following an off day, LHP Reid Detmers (0-0, 5.79 ERA) starts for the Angels in their home opener on Friday night. RHP Bryan Woo (0-0, 3.00 ERA) takes the mound for Seattle.

Cubs: RHP Cade Horton (1-0, 2.84 ERA) starts the opener of a weekend series at Cleveland on Friday. LHP Joey Cantillo (0-0, 4.91 ERA) gets the ball for the Guardians.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Los Angeles Angels starter Yusei Kikuchi delivers a pitch during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)

Los Angeles Angels manager Kurt Suzuki, left, attempts to challenge a play with an umpire during the third inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)

Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong watches his RBI single during the third inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels in Chicago, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)

Chicago Cubs' Matt Shaw watches his RBI single during the third inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels in Chicago, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)

Chicago Cubs starter Matthew Boyd delivers a pitch during a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels in Chicago, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)