Ukraine's allies in Kyiv for war talks

SECURITY advisors from Ukraine's top allies met in Kyiv at the weekend for talks on a US-brokered plan to end the war with Russia, days after Kyiv announced a deal was "90%" ready.

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Officials from 15 countries including Britain, France and Germany as well as representatives from Nato and the EU joined the meeting, the first of several planned for the new year.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff also joined virtually, a Ukrainian official said, though the US' large-scale military attack on Venezuela earlier in the day overshadowed proceedings.

A followup summit of European leaders was expected to take place in France tomorrow, according to Ukraine.

"National security advisors from European countries have arrived in Kyiv," Ukraine's chief negotiator Rustem Umerov said in a post on Telegram. He announced in a later post that the meeting had started.

"The first part of the meeting focused on framework documents, including security guarantees and approaches to the peace plan, as well as the sequence of further joint steps," he said.