U.S. President Donald Trump’s top negotiators have met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine intensify.
Footage released by the Kremlin showed U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner being welcomed by Putin, who acknowledged that the current situation was “not so easy” and said Russia would explain how it viewed the conflict.
Witkoff thanked Putin for agreeing with Ukraine to halt strikes on each other’s capitals for three days. The U.S. envoys are expected to travel to Kyiv on Sunday for further talks.
Trump said on Friday that Witkoff and Kushner were travelling with a proposal aimed at ending the war. Previous efforts by the United States and its allies to broker a peace agreement have failed to produce a breakthrough.
During Saturday’s meeting at the Kremlin, Putin said such contacts were “always useful” and thanked Trump for his efforts to promote peace. He also said he was comfortable working with Witkoff and Kushner, describing the level of trust between the sides as relatively high.
Russian state media reported that the talks, held behind closed doors at Putin’s official residence in central Moscow, lasted around three hours.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier that he had spoken with the U.S. envoys, who had already begun discussions with the Russian side.
“The plan for tomorrow’s diplomatic engagements in Kyiv, involving the U.S. team, has been approved. We are waiting for Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and are ready for a substantive conversation,” Zelensky said.
He added that Ukraine was prepared to refrain from strikes on Moscow through Saturday, Sunday and Monday, and called on Russia to reciprocate by halting attacks on Kyiv.
Russian state media reported that Putin had ordered a three-day halt to strikes on Kyiv in connection with the U.S. visit. However, Putin later said Russia had not agreed to a broader ceasefire covering the rest of Ukraine.
The Russian president also said he would ensure the security of the negotiating process and the mediators involved.
The planned visit to Kyiv would be the first to Ukraine by Witkoff and Kushner, who have travelled to Russia several times. It remains unclear how the U.S. envoys will travel from Moscow to Kyiv, as Ukrainian airspace has been closed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Ukraine has held several rounds of negotiations in the United States over the past 18 months.
Earlier on Saturday, Zelensky accused Russia of carrying out “demonstrative” strikes on airports in Kyiv and Boryspil overnight, suggesting they were linked to preparations for the U.S. delegation’s possible arrival by aircraft.
Zelensky said the strikes appeared to be a response to discussions about the possibility of the U.S. team flying to Ukraine and landing at Kyiv or Boryspil airport.
On Friday, he said Ukraine would guarantee the safety of Russian airspace during the envoys’ visit and called on Moscow to provide similar guarantees for Ukraine.
Zelensky also said a Russian overnight strike on a civilian building in the Dnipro region had killed four people and injured five others.
The Moscow talks came just over a week after CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a rare visit to the Russian capital. There was no official confirmation from Washington or the Kremlin regarding the details of that meeting, with Trump previously describing it as “semi-routine.”
Last year, the United States, Ukraine and Russia separately suggested that a peace agreement could be within reach following a series of U.S.-brokered discussions. European allies also held negotiations in Paris, but the talks ultimately ended without a breakthrough.
Major disagreements remain over issues including territorial control and security guarantees for Ukraine.
Meanwhile, both Russia and Ukraine have intensified their aerial attacks in recent months as fighting continues. Ukraine has said it is struggling to intercept Russian ballistic missiles because of shortages of interceptor missiles, while Kyiv has increasingly targeted Russian economic and energy infrastructure.
Source: BBC
