US envoys arrive in Moscow for Ukraine peace talks with Putin
US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff have arrived in Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, seeking to revive negotiations aimed at ending Russia’s nearly five-year war in Ukraine. Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s special envoy, met the delegation at its plane on Thursday and accompanied it into central Moscow.
The visit follows two days of US-mediated, trilateral talks between Russia and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi, the first direct negotiations between the two sides in nine months. The discussions produced plans for another major prisoner exchange, but no agreement on ending the war. The United States said substantial differences remained, particularly over territory, although there had been some progress on possible post-war security guarantees.
Kyiv has rejected Putin’s demand that Ukraine surrender all of the eastern Donbas region. The US delegation is expected to present an updated peace proposal and try to persuade Putin to include European countries in the process. Moscow has opposed their participation, while Ukraine and the United States want European partners involved.
The talks coincide with a European Political Community summit in Dublin attended by more than 40 European leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. Kushner and Witkoff are due to meet Zelenskyy there on Friday. France’s Benjamin Haddad meanwhile said the EU would approve new sanctions against Russia on Monday targeting 150 entities and 50 banks.
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