Trump's envoys in Moscow to present a proposal to end the war in Ukraine
The two US envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, arrived in Moscow on Saturday to present a proposal to end the war in Ukraine, which has been raging for more than four years.
Following talks in Moscow, the envoys of US President Donald Trump are scheduled to travel to Kyiv in the latest attempt by Washington to break the diplomatic deadlock in Europe’s most violent conflict since World War II.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of trying to disrupt the envoys’ visit by launching overnight raids on Kyiv airports on Saturday, as well as striking a civilian target in the Dnipro region that killed five people.
Zelenskyy said, “It is clear that these Russian strikes on the airports are a response to the talks and preparations related to the possibility of a US side visit to Ukraine by air, landing at Kyiv or Boryspil airports.”
This would be the first visit by Trump’s friend, businessman Witkoff, and his son-in-law, Kushner, to the war-torn capital, since Trump returned to the White House last year with a pledge to resolve the conflict.
Traveling by air would be a highly unusual step, as Ukrainian airspace has been closed since the start of the invasion in 2022. Most leaders and officials who have visited Kyiv have traveled by train.
A senior Ukrainian official told Agence France-Presse that the envoys would arrive in Kyiv on Sunday, while the US Axios website reported that the envoys would meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday.
US-led diplomatic efforts to end the Russian invasion have stalled in recent months, as Washington shifted its focus to the conflict with Iran.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has become Europe’s worst conflict since World War II, resulting in the deaths of thousands of civilians and hundreds of thousands of soldiers.
Trump said, “I sent Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who are skilled negotiators. They have done a great job, and I sent them to see if we can reach an agreement. There may be a good chance of achieving that.”
The US president declined to reveal whether the plan involves Ukraine ceding territory, as he had previously suggested, but added, “We have an idea for peace.”
Witkoff and Kushner, who have participated in ceasefire negotiations in Gaza and Iran, have frequently traveled to Moscow in previous diplomatic efforts.
Hours before Trump’s announcement of sending the envoys, Zelenskyy accused Russia of launching a drone that hit the headquarters of the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) in Kyiv, noting that it was targeting the office of the agency’s head.
Despite the unprecedented nature of this strike, the Ukrainian president proposed a ceasefire with Russia during the envoys’ anticipated visit.
He said in his evening address, “We will not launch air strikes on our side, and Russia must mutually respect a ceasefire, without conducting its air strikes, for the duration required to hold these talks.”
Russia has not yet commented on the proposal.
Hours later, Oleksandr Ganza, head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, said a Russian air strike killed four people and injured five others in the city of Kamianske in the southeast of the country.
On Wednesday, Zelenskyy said the Russian airspace would be “unsafe” amid Kyiv’s increasing drone attacks on Russian territory.
The visit by Witkoff and Kushner comes more than a week after a rare trip to Moscow by US Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe, who warned Russia against any attack on NATO member states, according to US media reports.
Earlier this week, the United States received Russia’s Finance Minister as part of a G20 ministers’ summit in North Carolina.
