Putin meets Trump envoys on Ukraine talks

Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday carrying what Donald Trump described as “a proposal to end the war.” Their meeting marks Washington’s latest and most significant effort this year to revive peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.

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But before we begin to address it, I would like to ask everyone to convey their best wishes and words of gratitude to US President Mr Trump.

Putin told the US envoys that the situation in Ukraine was difficult. He also asked them to convey his “best wishes and words of gratitude” to Trump. Witkoff said the US president had sent his own best wishes and thanked Putin for a ceasefire during the delegation’s visit.

The Kremlin said Putin ordered Russian forces to stop strikes on Kyiv for three days from midnight. The pause was announced as the two envoys prepared to leave Moscow for their first official visit to Ukraine, expected on Sunday. Putin also said Russia would do everything possible to ensure the mediators’ safety.

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A proposal to end the war.

Trump said Witkoff and Kushner, whom he called “two great negotiators,” were going to Moscow and Kyiv to determine whether an agreement could be reached. “There may be a good chance that we’ll do it,” he said.

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There may be a good chance that we'll do it.

Zelenskyy said Russia had already attempted to undermine the diplomatic effort through overnight strikes on Kyiv’s two airports. He also said a Russian attack on a civilian target in the Dnipro region killed five people. “There would be no threats to diplomacy” from Ukraine, he wrote on X, while accusing Moscow of reacting to preparations for a possible US aircraft journey to Ukraine.

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There would be no threats to diplomacy from the Ukrainian side.