Witkoff and Kushner visited Moscow to seek European participation in negotiations over Ukraine.
Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner seek European involvement as Russia demands wider negotiations on the continent’s security arrangements.
President Donald Trump’s envoys visited Moscow on Thursday to seek Europe’s inclusion in Ukraine peace talks. Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met President Vladimir Putin as Russia pressed for broader changes to European security arrangements.
The Kremlin insists negotiators must address those demands before it will consider a ceasefire. Meanwhile, the US administration is renewing its diplomatic push despite Russia showing no sign of ending the war soon.
The Moscow visit followed talks that Witkoff and Kushner mediated in Abu Dhabi a day earlier. Russian and Ukrainian representatives spoke directly there for the first time in nine months.
After meeting Putin, the two envoys were scheduled to travel to Dublin for discussions with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Ukraine peace talks face wider Russian demands
Witkoff and Kushner are pressing for European participation as Moscow seeks to widen the negotiations beyond the war. Russia wants talks to address the security arrangements governing the continent, while appearing to harden some positions.
The latest diplomatic effort also comes after Republicans suffered heavy losses in the US midterm elections. Trump’s administration is seeking a foreign policy success as it pursues another attempt to secure peace.
Meanwhile, Russia has stepped up attacks on Ukrainian cities ahead of a winter bombing campaign. Those attacks exploit Ukraine’s shortage of air defences.
Zelensky also said on Thursday that Ukrainian forces again faced restrictions on Starshield, the military version of the Starlink satellite internet network. He said Ukraine had asked the United States for information.
