Kremlin calls Witkoff-Kushner talks a small step toward peace
This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.
The Kremlin on Monday described the talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner as a small step toward peace. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he discussed the meetings with his negotiating team and European partners. The Financial Times reported the talks in Moscow and Kyiv produced no concrete results.
Key Facts
- Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on September 7 that the talks were a small step toward peace and that Moscow highly values US efforts to end the war.
- The Financial Times reported, citing sources, that the multi-hour talks in Kyiv and Moscow produced no results and that Trump's envoys brought few new ideas.
- Witkoff and Kushner met Putin in Moscow on September 5 and arrived in Kyiv by train from Poland on September 6 for their first visit to Ukraine as peace negotiators.
- Zelensky said he discussed the meetings with his negotiating team and representatives of France, the UK, and Germany, focusing on air defense needs and a winter package.
- Russia demands Ukrainian neutrality, retention of occupied territories, a cap on Ukraine's army, and the disbanding of far-right units, according to Al Jazeera.
Kremlin Reaction
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on September 7 that the talks between Putin and the US envoys were a small step toward peace. Peskov added that Moscow highly values the efforts of the American negotiators to end the war against Ukraine. He did not rule out the possibility of resuming a trilateral negotiation format mentioned by Kushner in Kyiv. Peskov said it was premature to discuss the venue and timing of US-mediated talks.
Ukrainian Response
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he discussed the outcome of the meetings with his negotiating team and representatives of France, the UK, and Germany. Zelensky wrote on Telegram that the parties substantively discussed Ukraine's air defense needs, technological cooperation, and a necessary winter package. He said partners know what can work and what must work by winter, and that further steps are being coordinated. Zelensky added that the next meetings and communication are being prepared.
Talks Assessment
The Financial Times reported, citing sources, that the multi-hour talks in Kyiv and Moscow produced no results. Trump's envoys presented updated versions of previously developed peace settlement documents adjusted for recent changes, according to the FT. The newspaper's sources said the envoys brought few new ideas and sought to revive earlier proposals and bring Kyiv and Moscow closer. Al Jazeera noted that Russia's position has hardened, with Moscow demanding Ukrainian neutrality, retention of occupied territories, and a cap on Ukraine's army.
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Time · lag behind first