Putin Meets Witkoff and Kushner for Marathon Session on Ending Ukraine War

Russian President Vladimir Putin held more than four hours of talks in the Kremlin with U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, focusing on potential paths toward ending the war in Ukraine — the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II.

Before the meeting, Putin warned that Europe would face rapid defeat in any direct clash with Russia and rejected recent European proposals on Ukraine as completely unacceptable. President Trump has repeatedly emphasized his desire to bring the fighting to an end, holding a summit with Putin in Alaska earlier this year and meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, though these efforts have yet to produce a settlement.

A leaked set of 28 U.S. draft proposals surfaced last week, worrying Ukrainian and European officials who said the ideas leaned too heavily toward Moscow’s demands, including limits on NATO involvement, Russian control of occupied territories, and restrictions on Ukraine’s military. In response, European governments produced a counter-plan, and subsequent talks in Geneva yielded what the United States and Ukraine called an updated peace framework.

During their meeting, Putin greeted Witkoff warmly and asked about his and Kushner’s walk through central Moscow, including Red Square. As the discussions continued past midnight, Trump noted in Washington that resolving the conflict remained extremely difficult, citing monthly casualties he described as staggering. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Witkoff’s mission reflects ongoing American efforts to push for an end to the war.