Trump’s envoys land in Moscow for Ukraine war talks with Putin

U.S. special representatives Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the latest attempt to breathe new life into diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine.

Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev greeted Witkoff and Kushner at the Vnukovo Airport in Moscow upon their arrival.

Dmitriev, who graduated from Stanford University and Harvard Business School, was hand-picked by Putin to lead negotiations with the Trump administration about the war in Ukraine. He also played a role in negotiating U.S. sanction waivers for Russian oil this year.

U.S. President Donald Trump suggested on Sept. 4 the U.S. had a fresh concrete proposal aimed at ending the war, which is now in its fifth year. He did not, however, elaborate on what that proposal would be.

Witkoff and Kushner will travel to Kyiv on Sept. 6 to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Though the U.S. envoys have both previously traveled to Russia for talks with Putin, this will mark their first visit to Kyiv.

The visit comes shortly after CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a brief, unannounced visit to Moscow to meet with his Russian counterparts.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Putin has…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/