US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Sunday after holding more than three hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
The rapid journey from the Russian to the Ukrainian capital marks Washington’s latest attempt to revive negotiations aimed at ending the war, more than four and a half years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Witkoff and Kushner arrived in Kyiv by train from Poland on September 6 and were welcomed by senior Ukrainian officials before meeting Zelensky at St. Sophia Square. It was their first official visit to Ukraine during the war, although both men have previously participated in talks with Putin in Russia.
Ahead of the meeting, Zelensky said Ukraine was prepared for a constructive discussion with the American delegation.
“We are interested in bringing the end of the war closer,” he said, stressing the need for security guarantees and a just and sustainable postwar settlement.
US Envoys Carry Putin’s Assessment to Kyiv
The Kyiv talks followed a closed-door meeting at the Kremlin on Saturday, during which Witkoff and Kushner presented Putin with US ideas for ending the conflict.
The White House said the meeting covered “substantive plans for next steps,” but neither Washington nor Moscow disclosed the proposals or announced a breakthrough.
Putin’s foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov, described the discussions as constructive, frank, and useful. He said the Russian president had provided the envoys with Moscow’s assessment of the battlefield and its position on the requirements for a lasting settlement.
The Americans therefore arrived in Kyiv carrying Putin’s response to Washington’s ideas rather than a fully developed Russian peace proposal.
The Moscow meeting also extended beyond the war. According to Ushakov, the participants discussed economic matters and potentially significant future projects involving Russia and the United States.
That broader agenda illustrates the complexity of the Trump administration’s approach, which seeks to connect efforts to end the war with the possibility of rebuilding relations between Washington and Moscow.
No Indication That Putin Has Compromised
Despite the positive language surrounding the Kremlin meeting, there was no public indication that Putin had softened Russia’s position.
Ushakov said the Russian leader emphasized the battlefield advances of Russian forces and expressed confidence that Moscow would achieve its military objectives. Putin also repeated his demand that any agreement address what the Kremlin calls the “root causes” of the conflict.
Russian officials have frequently used the phrase when calling for Ukrainian neutrality, restrictions on the country’s armed forces, and an end to its NATO ambitions. Moscow has also demanded that Ukraine withdraw from territory Russia claims but does not fully control.
These conditions remain unacceptable to Kyiv, which insists that any settlement must preserve Ukrainian sovereignty and include credible security guarantees against another Russian attack.
The absence of visible concessions from Moscow raises questions about whether the latest diplomatic activity represents genuine momentum or simply another attempt to restate positions that have repeatedly blocked negotiations.
Limited Pause in Attacks
Putin and Zelensky agreed to suspend attacks on each other’s capitals during the American delegation’s mission. The limited arrangement reduced the immediate threat to Moscow and Kyiv but did not constitute a broader ceasefire.
Fighting and aerial attacks continued elsewhere. Russian strikes across several Ukrainian regions killed one person and wounded at least ten others overnight into Sunday, according to Ukraine’s emergency service. A Ukrainian drone strike also killed a man in Russia’s Belgorod border region, local authorities said.
The temporary restraint around the two capitals demonstrated that both sides could make limited arrangements to facilitate diplomacy. At the same time, the continuing attacks elsewhere underscored how far the negotiations remain from producing a nationwide cessation of hostilities.
Diplomacy Faces a Test of Substance
The Moscow-to-Kyiv mission has reopened a direct diplomatic channel at a time when Washington’s previous peace efforts had lost momentum.
Its significance, however, will depend on whether the talks produce movement on the fundamental disputes dividing Russia and Ukraine. These include control of occupied territory, Ukraine’s future relationship with NATO, sanctions on Russia, and the security guarantees that would underpin any settlement.
Zelensky has made clear that Kyiv is ready to present its proposals. Putin, meanwhile, appears confident that Russia’s position on the battlefield will allow it to demand further concessions rather than offer them.
Witkoff and Kushner’s journey between the two capitals gives Washington another opportunity to determine whether any common ground exists. Their immediate task is to establish whether Moscow and Kyiv are willing to negotiate the substance of a settlement rather than merely participate in another round of diplomatic meetings.
Shuttle diplomacy has placed the possibility of negotiations back on the agenda. Without compromises, enforceable security guarantees, and a wider halt to the fighting, however, the initiative risks producing movement between capitals but little movement toward peace.
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