Kushner and Witkoff Arrive in Moscow for Putin Talks

The back-to-back meetings with both leaders represent the highest-level shuttle diplomacy of the U.S.-led peace effort so far. The in-person sessions with the Russian and Ukrainian presidents were announced Wednesday, following two days of talks in Abu Dhabi that the BBC said were framed around the postwar security architecture of Europe.

Kushner said Tuesday the U.S. had seen “some openings and some opportunities” and would try to make progress in the Putin meeting. He said he and Witkoff would ask Putin to approve bringing European representatives into future discussions, particularly on questions of continental security, and urged Europe to pick a single person to speak for it in the negotiations. Russia has opposed European participation, citing Europe’s support for Kyiv, according to the BBC.

The context

The Moscow visit follows a second day of U.S.-brokered talks this week between delegations from Moscow and Kyiv, the Associated Press reported. The negotiations aim to end the war that began with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine nearly five years ago. The Abu Dhabi talks were led by the Americans and included only Russia and Ukraine. The trip is the latest of several that Kushner and Witkoff have made to see Putin, per the BBC. In the war’s early years, European governments cut communications with the Kremlin and declined direct engagement with Russia. More recently, the BBC reported, many European officials have grown concerned about the current U.S. administration’s commitment to European security and what they see as a softening toward Moscow, and have pushed for a place at the negotiating table. Moscow, meanwhile, has shown no sign of abandoning its demands for sovereign Ukrainian territory or its insistence that Western countries forgo future commitments to defend Kyiv.

Why it matters

A direct meeting between Putin and senior U.S. envoys, paired with a same-day session with Zelensky, is the most senior-level engagement yet in the U.S.-brokered effort to end the war. The outcome could shape U.S. foreign policy toward Russia, the terms of any settlement for Ukraine, and the future security arrangements of Europe. Whether European governments gain a seat at the table is a live question: Kushner wants Putin’s approval to include them, while Russia has resisted. Vladimir Medinsky, who led Russia’s delegation in Abu Dhabi, said parties had “moved closer to achieving peace” but that much depends on Ukraine, the U.S. and Europe.

What’s next

Kushner and Witkoff were due to meet Putin at noon Moscow time Thursday before flying to Dublin for talks with Zelensky. Key open questions include whether Putin agrees to European participation in future rounds, whether Russia moves off its territorial and security demands, and what, if anything, the envoys announce after the two meetings. No further rounds of talks have been detailed in the reporting so far.