In brief
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son‑in‑law, and Steve Witkoff are set to travel to Moscow on Saturday and Kyiv on Sunday, a move that signals growing momentum in efforts to end the Ukraine war. President Zelensky confirmed he will meet the envoys, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the talks would be announced if any decisions were made. Putin hinted that a peace deal might emerge but insisted that Moscow and Kyiv must agree first, and Ukraine’s security chief was reportedly hit by a drone in Kyiv earlier this week. The visits mark the first time the envoys have undertaken talks directly in Ukraine, adding a new layer to the negotiations amid ongoing conflict.
Jared Kushner, former U.S. national security adviser and Trump’s son‑in‑law, alongside senior diplomat Steve Witkoff, will visit Moscow and Kyiv this weekend, a development that could bring new energy to stalled peace negotiations over the Ukraine conflict.
According to the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky will meet the envoys on Sunday after the pair arrive in Moscow on Saturday to hold talks with President Vladimir Putin. The meetings are part of a broader effort by former President Trump’s team to broker an end‑to‑end settlement, though a gulf remains between the warring parties.
Earlier on Friday, Zelensky reported that a Russian drone struck the office of Ukraine’s security chief Oleksandr Poklad in Kyiv, but Poklad was unharmed. In a post on social media, the president told his leadership to respond adequately to the attack.
Witkoff and Kushner’s Moscow visit is not the first time they have gone to Russia, but the talks in Kyiv represent the first direct outreach in Ukraine itself.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian state news agency TASS had expected the envoys to “arrive in Moscow and then to Kyiv… on 5‑6 September.” He added that the Kremlin would inform the public if the contacts took place.
Putin, speaking at an international economic forum on Thursday, acknowledged that there are chances for a peace deal, stressing that Moscow and Kyiv must find common ground first. However, he maintained his maximalist stance, calling for significant territorial concessions from Ukraine — demands that Kyiv and its European allies have repeatedly rejected as capitulation.
The full‑scale invasion began in February 2022, and Russian forces currently control about 20% of Ukraine’s territory.
