Russian President Vladimir Putin met with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in the Kremlin today, Saturday (September 5, 2026), and informed them at the beginning of the talks that the situation in Ukraine was “difficult.”
Putin praised the efforts of US President Donald Trump to end the four-and-a-half-year war in Ukraine. Trump had indicated yesterday, Friday, that the United States had a new proposal aimed at ending the war, but he did not provide details.
"While he is aware of the difficulty of the situation, he does not stop making efforts to help reach a settlement and contribute to resolving the Russian-Ukrainian conflict," Putin said. As in previous meetings, Putin was accompanied by his foreign policy advisor, Yuri Ushakov, and his investment envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, who received the American envoys at the airport and took them to a restaurant and from there to the Kremlin.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated in a statement published on the Kremlin channel on the Max messaging application that Putin ordered the army not to bomb Kiev for three days, starting at midnight on Saturday, against the backdrop of Witkov and Kushner’s visit to the Ukrainian capital.
Putin noted the decline in the intensity of Ukrainian attacks on Russia, and promised to guarantee the safety of American negotiators. He explained that Russia has not yet agreed to a broader ceasefire for three days.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that he spoke with the American envoys who are scheduled to visit Ukraine tomorrow, Sunday, adding that Ukraine is ready to stop strikes on Moscow until Monday.
A huge gap in attitudes
The Russian Ministry of Defense announced that 53 Ukrainian drones were detected in Russian airspace today, a number much lower than the average recorded in the past few months. Moscow celebrates City Day today, with hundreds of thousands of people participating in open-air celebrations across the capital.
Huge differences still exist between Russia and Ukraine regarding ways to end the war, which has exceeded four and a half years.
A source close to the Kremlin, speaking before reports of a possible visit by Trump envoys, said Putin remains determined to control more territory. The source told Reuters, “There is no chance of reaching an agreement on the front line before Putin finishes securing the remaining part of the Donetsk region,” adding that the Russian president is confident, based on reports from his commanders, that this will happen by the end of the year.
The Kremlin's position is "steadfast"
Western military analysts believe that such a possibility is remote, given the slow pace of Russian advance. Ukraine refuses to give up territory it successfully defended at a high cost, and considers these conditions tantamount to surrender.
The Kremlin said yesterday that Putin's position, which he put forward in a speech two years ago - that Ukraine should cede the entire territory of the four regions claimed by Russia and abandon its efforts to join NATO - remains "steadfast."
Both sides have intensified their long-range air attacks inside each other's territory since their most recent peace talks, which took place in February, while the war at sea has also escalated. At the field level, the front lines have remained largely fixed, as Russia is making only gradual gains in its efforts to extend its full control over the Ukrainian Donbass region.
Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian oil refineries led to fuel shortages and higher prices for motorists in Russia over the summer, while about 30 attacks on giant warehouses mostly belonging to Wildberries, the country's largest online retailer, affected the consumer economy.
Edited by: A.J.M
