MOSCOW: US President Donald Trump’s special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine gain momentum.
Video released by the Kremlin showed Putin welcoming the two US representatives at his official residence. Describing the situation as complex, Putin said Russia would explain its assessment of the current circumstances. Witkoff, meanwhile, thanked Putin for agreeing with Ukraine to suspend attacks on each other’s capitals for three days.
The US envoys are scheduled to travel to Kyiv on Sunday for further discussions with Ukrainian officials. Trump said on Friday that Witkoff and Kushner were carrying a proposal aimed at ending the war. Previous attempts by Washington and its allies to broker a lasting peace agreement have so far failed to produce a deal.
During Saturday’s meeting, Putin said continued contact with the US side was useful regardless of the outcome. He also thanked Trump for his efforts to promote peace and said he was comfortable working with Witkoff and Kushner, citing a high level of trust between the negotiating sides.
The talks, held behind closed doors at the Russian president’s residence in central Moscow, lasted about three hours, according to Russian state media.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier Saturday that he had spoken with the US envoys, who had already begun discussions with the Russian side. He said plans for Sunday’s diplomatic meetings in Kyiv had been finalized and that Ukraine was prepared for substantive negotiations with Witkoff and Kushner.
Zelensky also said Ukraine was prepared to refrain from attacking Moscow through Saturday, Sunday and Monday, and called on Russia to observe the same restraint toward Kyiv.
Russian state media reported that Putin had ordered a three-day suspension of strikes on Kyiv during the US delegation’s visit. However, Putin later clarified in televised remarks that Russia had not agreed to a broader ceasefire covering the rest of Ukraine.
The Russian president also pledged to ensure the safety of the negotiating process and the mediators involved.
Witkoff and Kushner have made several previous visits to Russia, but Sunday’s planned talks would mark their first visit to Ukraine for negotiations. It remains unclear how the US officials will travel from Moscow to Kyiv, as Ukrainian airspace has remained closed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
(Inputs from BBC)
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