US envoys Witkoff and Kushner expected in Ukraine after talks with Putin

While peace between Russia and Ukraine still seems very far away, American diplomacy is once again taking the lead in trying to silence the guns. After meeting Vladimir Putin in Moscow, American envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected in Ukraine for the first time this Sunday, carrying, according to Donald Trump, a proposal intended to end the conflict.

The Russian president spoke for three hours on Saturday evening with Steve Witkoff, a businessman close to Donald Trump, and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of the American president, a conversation that Kremlin advisor Yuri Ushakov described as “constructive, extremely frank and full of trust”.

A “not simple” situation, according to Putin

“The American representatives have carefully prepared for this trip. They not only reiterated their usual interest in a rapid end to hostilities, but they also presented a number of ideas on possible paths leading to a settlement,” Yuri Ushakov said. The Russian side “expressed confidence in achieving the objectives set,” he added, without revealing the objectives in question.

A White House spokesperson later said the two envoys "discussed substantial plans for next steps, which will be announced in the coming weeks." “The situation is of course not simple,” for his part, the Russian president delayed to the two envoys in a large room in the Kremlin, according to images broadcast by Russian television.

According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, it was at one point considered that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, whose first visit to Ukraine will be, would travel directly from Moscow to kyiv by plane, which would have been exceptional. The U.S. government plane carrying the two envoys finally landed in the early hours of Sunday in Rzeszow, Poland, according to aviation tracking site FlightRadar24.

Bombings suspended

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Saturday that Vladimir Putin had ordered a three-day cessation of strikes on kyiv, while planned contacts with these representatives of the American government took place. On Friday, Volodymyr Zelensky certified that Ukraine would not bomb Russia during these negotiations.

Our file on the War in Ukraine

Since 2025, Donald Trump has initiated several rounds of discussions to try to find a solution to the conflict. But these attempts have not led to any tangible progress. He did not specify whether the proposal transmitted by his emissaries involved a cession of territories on the part of Ukraine, as he had previously suggested. He just said: “We have an idea for peace.” The White House tenant also attributed the war to a “personality problem” between Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin.