Former President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and special envoy Steve Witkoff held more than three hours of top-secret talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday, a delegation aimed at advancing a peace settlement in the Ukraine war.
The U.S. envoys arrived in the Russian capital Saturday morning and were escorted by Putin's investment envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, to the Kremlin for the closed-door meetings.
During the discussions, Putin characterized the conflict as a "complicated situation" but expressed appreciation for Trump's commitment to ending the war. "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 of Trump, according to Russian state news agency TASS.
As the talks proceeded, both Russia and Ukraine agreed to a temporary pause on strikes against each other's capitals. Putin ordered no strikes on Kyiv for three days, beginning at midnight Saturday, presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told TASS. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine would reciprocate by refraining from strikes on Moscow until Monday, and confirmed he had spoken with the U.S. delegation after their arrival.
Trump, who described Kushner and Witkoff as "two great negotiators," indicated that they were bringing a proposal to end the conflict. This diplomatic push comes as U.S. attention has been largely focused on the Iran war over the past six months, leading to a loss of momentum in efforts to resolve the Ukraine conflict.
Kushner and Witkoff are scheduled to visit Kyiv on Sunday for the first time as part of the peace process, according to Ukrainian officials. The envoys previously visited Moscow in January for similar discussions with Putin.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, 2022.
In the lead-up to the envoys' arrival, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov questioned the extent to which the U.S. administration is prepared to invest in a genuine solution, considering the current realities on the ground. Ryabkov suggested that the situation was not developing in Ukraine's favor, TASS reported.
Meanwhile, Zelenskyy announced that Russia had carried out "deliberate" strikes on Ukrainian airports in Kyiv and Boryspil overnight. He stated on X that these actions appeared to be a reaction to the potential for U.S. aircraft to travel to Ukraine. Zelenskyy added that four people were killed and five injured in a separate Russian strike in Kamianske, Dnipro region. He affirmed Ukraine's interest in peace but also stated that Russia would be held accountable for its actions.