A marathon five-hour meeting in Moscow involving Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, concluded without significant advancements toward resolving the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Despite high hopes, the discussions did not result in any major breakthroughs.
Witkoff and Kushner arrived in the Russian capital on Tuesday, having already engaged with key members of the Ukrainian delegation the previous Sunday to discuss a revised peace plan. Their mission was to explore potential avenues for peace with the Kremlin leader.
Among those present at the Moscow talks was Putin’s foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, and Kirill Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund. Ushakov later described the conversations as “extremely useful, constructive, and substantive,” according to a Kremlin-issued statement.
Ushakov elaborated, “We specifically addressed territorial issues, which we believe are essential for resolving the crisis. Additionally, we discussed the broader prospects for future economic cooperation between our nations.”
The meeting saw Jared Kushner, Steve Witkoff, Yuri Ushakov, and Kirill Dmitriev convening with President Putin at the Kremlin’s Senate Palace. The event was captured in photographs by Alexander Kazakov of Sputnik, distributed via the Kremlin Pool Photo service through the Associated Press.
During the discussions, the Russian representatives received four documents from the U.S. side, one of which reportedly encompassed 27 points. However, Ushakov refrained from revealing specific details about the contents of these documents.
The original leaked 28-point plan was criticized by European leaders as too favorable to Moscow and later whittled down.
The issue of territory was a key part of the discussion, according to Ushakov, who said no compromise had yet been found.
“However, some of the American proposals appear more or less acceptable. They do, nevertheless, require further discussion. Certain wording we have been offered is not suitable for us. In other words, the work will continue,” said the senior Russian diplomat.
President Vladimir Putin engages in talks with Jared Kushner, Steve Witkoff, Yuri Ushakov and Kirill Dmitriev at the Kremlin’s Senate Palace in Moscow on December 2, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
A key sticking point in negotiations has been territorial demands from Russia, who wants Ukraine to relinquish the entire Donbas, including parts its military does not currently control.
The Institute for the Study of War, a nonpartisan public policy research organization that tracks the frontlines of the Russia-Ukraine war, said Russian forces have advanced in Sumy Oblast and near Kostiantynivka, Pokrovsk and Huliaipole.
Ukraine’s Joint Forces Task Force reported on Telegram that its forces still control most of the city of Kupiansk, though Russian forces maintain isolated groups in the northern parts.
An evacuation van drives through the largely destroyed frontline city of Kupiansk, Ukraine, on Jan. 6, 2025. (Wolfgang Schwan/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday that Rustem Umerov, the secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, was preparing for a meeting in Brussels with national security advisors to European leaders to brief their colleagues on the Witkoff-Kushner meeting with Putin.
“After Brussels, Rustem Umerov and Andrii Hnatov will begin preparations for a meeting with envoys of President Trump in the United States,” said Zelenskyy. “As always, Ukraine will work constructively in pursuit of a real peace. I expect a new report following the results of today’s meetings in Europe.”
