US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday for a five-hour discussion aimed at restarting trilateral talks to end the war in Ukraine. According to Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov, the session was constructive, though no formal breakthrough or final peace deal has been reached.
US Envoys Push for Ukraine Peace Talks as Trump Officials Meet Putin in Moscow
The high-level diplomatic push comes nearly four years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion. Ukraine currently faces severe manpower constraints on the battlefield, while President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government deals with domestic political strain following a major government corruption scandal that prompted the resignation of its top negotiator. Ukrainian officials and Western allies remain cautious regarding Witkoff’s role, pointing to a leaked phone call transcript published by Bloomberg News that indicated he advised Moscow on engaging with President Donald Trump.
During Tuesday’s meeting at the Kremlin, the U.S. delegation presented multiple written proposals. Ushakov noted in a video published online by the Kremlin that the American side handed over a document outlining 27 points alongside four additional papers. While Russian officials reviewed the 27-point text, Ushakov stated that the parties did not engage in word-by-word negotiations on that specific document.
“A compromise hasn’t been found yet, but some American proposals seem more or less acceptable, but they need to be discussed,” Ushakov told reporters in the Kremlin briefing video. When asked whether an end to the conflict is closer now than before, Ushakov replied that it is no further along, emphasizing that substantial work remains ahead in both Washington and Moscow.
Kremlin Territorial Demands and U.S. Proposals
Moscow continues to anchor its negotiation strategy around core territorial demands. According to Ushakov, territorial issues were specifically discussed during the five-hour meeting, with the Kremlin maintaining that a resolution is impossible without addressing them. Russian President Vladimir Putin has long sought full control over Ukraine’s eastern industrial region, known as the Donbas, which includes the contested Donetsk region and Russian-controlled Luhansk. Russia currently occupies roughly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.
Michael A. Horowitz, an independent geopolitical analyst tracking the conflict, noted that the Kremlin is unlikely to accept any agreement falling short of its core objectives, which include watered-down security guarantees for Kyiv alongside mandatory territorial concessions. Horowitz added that ceding to these demands could leave Ukraine vulnerable to future military aggression, recalling Russia’s initial incursions in 2014 and 2022.
Washington Strategy and Attrition Warfare
Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the administration’s push to bring both warring parties to the table. Rubio described the conflict as a grinding war of attrition, pointing to high casualty rates among Russian forces. “Only Putin can end this war on the Russian side,” Rubio said, adding that Washington is actively working to find acceptable compromises that both nations can live with.
Following Tuesday’s discussions, Kirill Dmitriev, a special envoy for Putin, published a single-word assessment on the social media platform X, describing the talks as “Productive.” Both governments confirmed that diplomatic contacts will persist through aides and designated representatives, though the Kremlin stated that no direct meeting between President Trump and President Putin has been scheduled at this time.
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