Off the battlefield, each side is trying to influence the American leader’s perception as they look to negotiate a peace settlement in their favor.

A Russian missile strike on port infrastructure in Odesa in southern Ukraine killed eight people and wounded 27, Ukraine's emergency service said Saturday, as a a Kremlin envoy was set to travel to Florida for talks on a U.S.-proposed plan to end the nearly four-year war.

President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy say they are making progress on a peace deal to end the war in Russia after meeting in Mar-a-Lago Sunday.

Moscow said a Ukrainian drone attack targeted a residence of President Vladimir V. Putin, which Ukraine denied, accusing the Kremlin of fabricating an excuse not to make peace.

Ukrainian troops from the 92nd Separate Assault Brigade reported detecting a group of Russian soldiers advancing toward their positions on horseback. Video footage released by the brigade shows the mounted troops being identified and struck by Ukrainian drone operators shortly after detection.

The Ukrainians are "are very happy being slow" as they know they need to secure everything, a British military officer told BI.

Russian forces control about 95 percent of what’s left of the city, which they aggressively shelled like much of Ukraine they have sought to control.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had a “very good” conversation with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner on Christmas Day as negotiations over the terms of a potential peace deal continued.

In a deeply disturbing incident in Ukraine, Russian forces executed three unarmed Ukrainian soldiers in the Zaporizhzhia region. Ukrainian intelligence reports indicate that the killings took place south of the town of Huliaipole on December 20.