US envoys hold first Kyiv talks with Zelenskyy
Photo: REUTERS
US special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday to discuss ending the war with Russia.
The event represents their first trip to Kyiv since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. The critical meeting occurred just one day after the American team sat down with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
Expressing deep appreciation, Zelenskyy thanked US President Donald Trump for permitting the visit during the ongoing conflict.
He said, “It is very important that the delegation has arrived to see us. We have been waiting a long time for Steve and Jared, Witkoff and Kushner. To us, it is very important to do everything so that this war ends.”
Following the discussions, Witkoff expressed optimism about their progress. He added, “We’ve had a very meaningful discussion, substantive, important, and we are very encouraged and we look forward to continuing this as long as it takes.”
Kushner explained that Trump aims “not just to figure out how we end the war, but how do we create the right conditions and arrangements for a long-term, durable peace.” He also noted that the American delegation had “learned a lot from the trip.”
European allies join the diplomatic push
Despite the nature of the diplomatic visit, Zelenskyy saying when it comes to the most important issues, like the issues of territory, that it would have to take place at the leader’s level, that is something that he has said time and time again.
However, the real takeaway was this visit in itself by the US envoys here to Ukraine, and the promise that they may return.
Prior to the formal statements, Zelenskyy posted a video online capturing his meeting with the envoys in central Kyiv, announcing, “Talks have begun.” Ukraine’s senior security officials and negotiators joined the meeting. National security advisers from Great Britain, France, and Germany participated in a second round of negotiations alongside the Ukrainian president and the American envoys.
Zelenskyy declared, “We are grateful that the Europeans are with us today… Here we are all on the same side.” He warned that the conflict “at the moment” appears destined to stretch into the winter months.
He added, “We very much hope that we will be able to reach agreements with our American partners, and we are counting on the support of our European partners if the war continues in winter - and this is how it appears at the moment.”
Although Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukraine would pursue additional talks with the US, France, and Germany, he did not share further details.
US envoys arrived in Kyiv via a train from Poland, aiming to jumpstart negotiations for Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II. While Witkoff and Kushner have traveled to Moscow eight times, they had never visited Kyiv until Sunday.
During the trip, Zelenskyy guided the envoys to Kyiv’s historic Saint Sophia’s Cathedral, which stands across from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) building that a Russian drone struck on Friday.
Moscow meetings and continued battlefield clashes
Prior to the Kyiv summit, the US envoys held a three-hour meeting in Moscow on Saturday. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov labeled the session “highly useful” and “extremely frank,” revealing that the US team “put forward a number of ideas on possible routes to a settlement.”
A White House official said authorities would announce the next steps in the upcoming weeks.
During televised remarks before the Moscow talks, Putin promised to protect the envoys during their subsequent trip to Kyiv. “We will do everything that depends on us to ensure the safety of the negotiation process and mediators such as yourselves,” Putin told Witkoff and Kushner.
He also thanked Trump on Saturday for his ongoing peace efforts, noting they were “not simple”. On Friday, Trump reiterated that his representatives carried a “proposal” to halt the fighting. “We have an idea for peace,” Trump added.
Up to this point, US peace efforts have not produced a breakthrough, partly due to the US-Israeli conflict with Iran. Russia occupies extensive regions in eastern and southern Ukraine, and Putin maintains that Moscow intends to capture the rest of the east.
The two sides remain deeply divided on key matters, including the future of Luhansk and Donetsk. Russia demands that Ukraine withdraw from heavily fortified towns it still controls there, but Kyiv refuses, believing it can hold its ground for years. For Ukraine, securing robust safety commitments from European allies and the US remains vital to preventing future Russian aggression.
Although both nations agreed to a three-day capital ceasefire during the envoys’ visit, heavy fighting continued elsewhere. Russian Defence Ministry claimed its forces targeted a Ukrainian cargo ship in the Black Sea on Sunday, which the Russian state news agency Tass reported was carrying Western military equipment.
According to the Interfax news agency, Russia also shot down 400 Ukrainian drones within a 24-hour window, while striking military infrastructure and drone storage sites. Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russia launched an overnight assault using 108 drones and missiles.
Ukraine also conducted an overnight strike on the Ryazan oil refinery, located around 480km (298 miles) inside Russia, which sparked a massive fire.
Source: Al Jazeera (adapted)
