RUSSIAN troops have captured the village of Dibrova in eastern Ukraine’s war-torn Donetsk region, Moscow claimed today, as US and Ukrainian leaders said that a peace deal could be close.

Also in Donetsk, at least one person was killed and five injured in Russian shelling of the eastern city of Sloviansk, according to the head of the region’s military administration.

Another person has been killed in Russian shelling of Orikhiv in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, according to Governor Ivan Fedorov.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said that Ukraine had ⁠tried to attack ​President Vladimir Putin’s residence ‍in the Novgorod region and, therefore, Moscow’s negotiating position ‍would change.

US President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky expressed optimism following talks in Florida, even as major disagreements remain, particularly over territory.

Ahead of the meeting, Mr Trump held a phone call lasting more than two hours with Mr Putin, which he described as “excellent” and “productive.”

Mr Zelensky said the United States was offering Ukraine security guarantees for 15 years as part of a proposed peace plan, though he said he would prefer commitments lasting up to 50 years to deter future Russian aggression.

Mr Trump hosted Mr Zelensky at his Florida resort on Sunday, insisting that Kiev and Moscow were “closer than ever before” to reaching a settlement.

Negotiators are still seeking progress on unresolved issues, including troop withdrawals and the fate of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, one of the world’s largest.

Mr Trump cautioned that the US-led talks, which have lasted for months, could still fail, while Mr Zelensky, in voice messages sent to reporters via WhatsApp, said: “Without security guarantees, realistically, this war will not end.”

The Ukrainian president said the proposed guarantees included mechanisms for monitoring any agreement and the “presence” of international partners, though Russia has rejected the deployment of Nato troops in Ukraine.

As negotiations intensify in the run-up to the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24 2022, Mr Putin said his forces were advancing in Donetsk and pressing their offensive in Zaporizhzhia.

He has also called for the creation of military buffer zones along Russia’s borders.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Ukraine’s allies would meet in Paris in early January to finalise contributions to security guarantees.