Donald Trump envoy Steve Witkov met Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Friday hours after the murder of senior Russian military officials in a car explosion near Moscow.
Trump visited Witkov’s visit (for the fourth time to Russia in recent months) claiming that the contract to end the war in Ukraine is within reach. “The next few days will be very important. The meeting is now taking place,” Trump told reporters Thursday. “I think we’re going to make a deal… I think we’re getting very close.”
However, no clear breakthrough was reached on Friday. Yuri Ushakov, senior aide to President Putin, who attended the talks, said the two sides “colded the differences” only as the discussion was “constructive and extremely useful.”
In a comment to the journalists, Ushakov added that there was also discussion about the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he had a message to Trump that Witkov had left Moscow. There were no immediate comments from Witkov about the results of the meeting.
At the start of the lecture, the Kremlin released a short clip showing Putin and Witkov (who holds no formal diplomatic qualifications), waving at the Kremlin to exchange pleasures in the Kremlin before beginning the meeting behind closed doors, sitting on the other side of a white oval table.
Putin was adjacent to a meeting by Ushakov and his investment envoy, Kiril Dmitriev. Three hours later, Witkov’s car was seen leaving the Kremlin.
Trump has repeatedly argued that he is approaching ending the war, but now in his fourth year, his efforts to mediate a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine have had almost no consequences so far, plagued by Moscow’s hard-pressed demands.
On Friday, Reuters released two sets of documents outlining the US and Ukraine proposals to end the war, revealing major differences on issues ranging from territorial concessions to sanctions.
It remains unclear whether Moscow, which has consistently rejected an immediate ceasefire, will agree to the US proposal despite key concessions it offers to the Kremlin, including retaining the territory it captured.
Trump on Friday admitted that the talks are “very fragile,” saying there is no deadline for achieving peace, and previously claimed that the war could be ended “in 24 hours.”
In an interview with Time Magazine was released on FridayTrump also said, “Crimea will remain in Russia.” He said this is the latest example of US leaders putting pressure on Ukraine.
Witkov’s visit comes hours after a senior Russian general was blown outside his apartment, apparently the latest Ukrainian operation deep in Russian territory.
Russian authorities named him Lt. Gen. Jaroslav Moscarick, the chief of operations for the Russian military’s general staff.
The explosion was essentially similar to previous attacks on the Russians later claimed by Ukraine.
The obvious assassination of Ukraine is unlikely to sit well with the Trump administration. The Trump administration is eager to show concrete progress in peace 100 days before Trump next week.
Despite Putin refused to agree to a ceasefire and continuing missile strikes in Ukraine, the US president repeatedly criticised Volodymyr Zelenskyy for stagnant peace negotiations, adopting a more cautious tone of voice against Russian leaders.
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The Russian commission on investigation said the explosion was caused by an explosion of an improvised explosive device packed with sh shotguns. The committee said it investigated major crimes and opened criminal cases.
Baza, a telegram channel with sources in Russian law enforcement, said a parked car bomb in the town of Balashika in the Moscow region exploded remotely as local police officers passed by.
Videos spreading on Russian social media captured the moment the car exploded, but additional images showed the burnt-out vehicle.
The Kremlin blamed Ukraine for the murder, and Peskov said Kiev was engaged in “terrorist activities on Russian territory.” Ukraine has not commented on the incident yet.
Since the inception of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine has targeted dozens of Russian military officers and officials set up by Russians, accusing Kiev of committing war crimes within the country. However, little is known about the secret Ukrainian resistance cells involved in assassination and attacks on the military infrastructure of Russia and the regions controlled by Russia.
Last December, Ukrainian security services targeted another senior Russian general, Lt. Gen. Igor Kirilov, after being killed after an explosive device hidden in an electric scooter that exploded outside a Moscow apartment building.
At the time, Keith Kellogg, who was appointed Special Representative for Ukraine and Russia, criticized the killing and said it could have violated the rules of the war.
Apart from military figures, Ukraine is targeting prominent Russian pro-war propagandists, including Darya Dugina, the daughter of the ultra-national Russian ideologue, who was killed in 2023 when the bomb exploded the Toyota land cruiser she was driving.
Moscarick, 59, has been part of several well-known Russian foreign delegations in recent years, including at least two rounds of consultations with Ukrainian and Western officials in 2015 and 2019, and a 2018 visit to the Syrian Assad regime. An insider close to the Ministry of Defense says his influence in the Russian army is on the rise.
Mikhail Zubinchuk, a popular Russian military blogger with ties to national defense facilities, said: “According to behind the scenes chattering, one scenario for a reconstruction with the general staff was considered a potential head of the Defense Management Center, primarily due to his systematic approach and consideration.”
