Steve Witkoff will arrive in Moscow later this week, a diplomatic adviser to President Vladimir Putin has said
US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will visit Russia later this week, Moscow has confirmed.
The plans for a new meeting involving the key US negotiator on the Ukraine conflict were first reported by American media last week. Yury Ushakov, who advises Russian President Vladimir Putin on international affairs, told the press on Tuesday that the reports were accurate.
Witkoff has had multiple rounds of talks with senior Russian officials, including Putin, and is viewed as one of the architects of the rapprochement between Moscow and Washington during the second Trump presidency.
The US president previously touted a possible breakthrough this week, potentially leading to a comprehensive ceasefire between Russian and Ukrainian forces. In contrast with his predecessor, Joe Biden, Trump has sought a mediation role in the conflict rather than being a direct supporter of Kiev.
Last Thursday, senior US representatives, including Witkoff, met with European officials who advocate continued military support of Ukraine, as well as Ukrainian representatives. They reportedly outlined a range of options for a resolution of the crisis, to which Kiev is expected to respond this week.
Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky has accused Witkoff of serving as a route for the Russian “narrative” purportedly flowing into the White House. The Zelensky government maintains that it won’t budge on its red lines in the conflict and could pursue hostilities with Russia without US backing.
Moscow has accused Zelensky of seeking a war “to the last Ukrainian.” Russia has noted that his presidential term expired last year and that his claim to presidential powers is based on martial law, which he ordered after the escalation of the conflict in 2022.
