Special envoy Steve Witkoff says the United States is confident that ongoing trilateral negotiations will produce a “good resolution” to the war in Ukraine.
Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, made their first visit to Kyiv on Sunday to negotiate an end to Russia’s yearslong war in Ukraine.
During a press conference following the meetings, Witkoff described the discussions as “substantive” and stated he was “confident that there’ll be a good resolution here.”
The pair had met with Vladimir Putin in Moscow the day prior, with that session lasting more than three hours behind closed doors and concluding without any announced breakthroughs.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov described the Saturday Moscow meeting as constructive, frank, and useful, but did not speak to any specific outcomes from the session.
Following their talks with Ukrainian officials, Witkoff told reporters that both Ukraine and Russia still “need to make some compromises,” but added “we think we have the ingredients to get to that place.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said during a Sunday press conference that the “territorial issue remains a relevant one,” while pushing for resolving “complex issues.”
Putin and Zelensky agreed to pause strikes on each other’s capitals while the current round of negotiations takes place.
“One thing Steve and I really thought would be productive is to go back to the trilateral format, which we were able to do about six months ago,” Kushner said during the Sunday press conference.
The White House told The Guardian that Witkoff and Kushner had “discussed substantive plans for next steps” with Putin regarding efforts to end the conflict.
Witkoff and Kushner traveled to the Ukrainian capital by train and later moved via motorcade to meet with Zelensky in the city.
Zelensky posted a video on the social platform X showing himself hugging both Witkoff and Kushner, writing in the caption that the two sides “began talks.”
Washington’s push to end the fighting has lost significant momentum over the past six months as U.S. attention shifted toward its own military conflict with Iran, which began in February.
The war between Russia and Ukraine will reach the four-year mark next February if a peace agreement is not reached before that point.
