In a significant diplomatic effort, US peace envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner engaged in over three hours of discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, aiming to revive the stagnant peace process in Ukraine. According to the White House, these talks centered on concrete plans for potential steps toward a settlement, with more details anticipated in the coming weeks. Following their meeting in Moscow, Witkoff and Kushner are scheduled to visit Kyiv to confer with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Kremlin representatives noted that the talks included several settlement proposals, though no significant breakthroughs were reported. President Putin reiterated Russia’s stance that the fundamental issues of the conflict need addressing and asserted that Russian forces are advancing on the battlefield. Meanwhile, President Zelenskyy suggested that recent Russian strikes on Kyiv and the Boryspil international airport might be connected to the US envoys’ presence. He also warned that Ukraine would modify its military strategies in response to Russia’s use of its airspace for attacks.
The US has been striving to rekindle negotiations after previous peace attempts failed to yield a resolution. Ending the conflict is a key foreign policy goal for President Donald Trump, who recently highlighted that Witkoff and Kushner were proposing a new plan to resolve the war. Nonetheless, significant differences persist between Russia and Ukraine. Russia insists on control over certain territories and opposes Ukraine’s potential NATO membership, conditions that Ukraine firmly rejects.
The conflict has seen an escalation in recent weeks, with both nations executing long-range drone and missile attacks. Russian forces have targeted Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, while Ukrainian forces have focused on Russian military installations, energy networks, and oil refineries to undermine Moscow’s war capabilities. This latest diplomatic effort by Washington seeks to bridge the considerable divide between the two sides amid ongoing hostilities along the approximately 1,250-kilometer frontline.
