Russian President Vladimir Putin met with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner for over three hours in Moscow. A Kremlin aide described the discussions as ‘highly useful.’ This meeting sets the stage for Witkoff and Kushner’s upcoming trip to Kyiv, where they are scheduled to meet with Ukrainian leaders on Sunday.
The trip by Witkoff and Kushner signaled a renewed attempt by Trump to stop a war that began with Russia’s full-scale invasion in early 2022 and that the US president once said he could swiftly end. Earlier reporting noted: MOSCOW, Sept 5 – Russian President Vladimir Putin met U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in the Kremlin on Saturday, telling them at the start of the talks that the situation in Ukraine is “difficult. President Donald Trump’s efforts to end the 4-1/2-year war in Ukraine.
Because it believes it has the military edge over Ukraine, according to people close to the Kremlin, who asked not to be identified discussing sensitive matters, putin is ready to stop the war only on his own terms, and Moscow’s demands are getting tougher. Witkoff and Kushner departed Moscow after the talks, the state-run Tass news agency reported.
Putin’s meeting with President Donald Trump ’s envoys was “substantive, constructive, extremely frank and trusting,” Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said in comments distributed by Russian media. They also discussed economic matters and potential Russian-US projects “in considerable detail,” Ushakov said. Ushakov said the “Russian side pointed to what it described as the Russian army’s tangible successes in advancing in the combat zone, expressed confidence that the stated objectives would be achieved. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on X that he’d spoken with the US envoys after their arrival in Moscow. Kyiv’s goal is to make the visit “as constructive and substantive as possible,” he said. Speaking in the Oval Office on Friday, Trump said his envoys were “bringing with them a proposal to end the war,” without elaborating. Earlier reporting noted: “Understanding that he is entering a difficult situation, he nevertheless does not stop his efforts to help bring about a settlement and to make his contribution to resolving the Russian-Ukrainian conflict,” Putin said.
“Our president reaffirmed his readiness to continue working jointly with the Americans to seek political and diplomatic solutions. The White House didn’t respond to requests for comment on the meeting. Putin ordered Russian forces to pause airstrikes on Kyiv as the two envoys prepared to visit the Ukrainian capital for the first time since the war began. He did not elaborate.
Earlier reporting noted: Putin praised U.S. Trump suggested on Friday the U.S. had a fresh proposal aimed at ending the war.
