White House Envoy Heads to Moscow for Peace Talks
Steve Witkoff, a special envoy from the White House, is in Moscow for a crucial meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. This follows a weekend filled with intense negotiations with Ukraine, all aimed at reaching a peace agreement.
Attention is on Putin and Jared Kushner, who is, of course, Donald Trump’s son-in-law and sometimes acts as a diplomatic envoy. There’s suspense surrounding whether Putin will agree to the 19-point proposal that was worked out with Ukraine following initial talks between the U.S. and Russia.
This latest diplomatic initiative represents a notable push towards a possible resolution since the major invasion in 2022. Still, the situation is tricky. Key issues—territorial disputes, Ukraine’s long-term security guarantees, and ceasefire terms—remain unresolved. Officials have indicated that for progress to happen, Putin will need to demonstrate some flexibility during this week’s discussions.
Initially, the two sides put forth a more extensive 28-point plan, which U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators found too favorable to Moscow. Thus, they returned to the drawing board. Witkoff and Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev met in Geneva in late November and reconvened in Florida over the weekend to fine-tune the details.
Both sides reported progress in talks, yet specifics on remaining sticking points were not disclosed. Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted, “There’s still a lot of work left to do.” He described the discussions as productive overall, suggesting some advancement was made.
Even with this momentum, significant distance remains between the two parties. Notably, Russia insists that Ukraine cannot join NATO, while Ukraine amended its constitution to make NATO membership a national objective. The original proposal also included a provision for Ukraine to reduce its peacetime military to 600,000 personnel, which was met with resistance. European and Ukrainian officials suggested a cap of 800,000 instead, given Ukraine’s current troop levels are around 880,000—up from about 209,000 prior to the invasion.
The most significant sticking point continues to be territorial concessions. An earlier iteration of the proposal acknowledged Crimea and parts of the Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhia regions as effectively Russian territories.
Adding to the complexity was the sudden resignation of Andriy Yermak, who was both the chief of staff and chief negotiator for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He stepped down following a corruption investigation that led authorities to search his home. Just days before, he had firmly stated that Ukraine wouldn’t concede any land for peace.
“No one in their right mind today would sign a document relinquishing territory,” he told The Atlantic.
Putin had mentioned in late November that he was open to “serious” dialogues, but he also stressed that fighting would cease only if Russia had the upper hand and Ukrainian forces retreated from the territories they had regained.
Analysts are suggesting that if negotiations falter, the U.S. still has various tools available—ranging from tightening sanctions to increasing military support for Ukraine. However, many of the most potent measures have already been applied, particularly against major Russian energy and financial entities. Since 2022, the U.S. has provided Ukraine with extensive military aid, amounting to billions.
If talks reach a deadlock, options could become increasingly limited. Despite Trump’s frustrations with the slow diplomatic pace—he’s mentioned that resolutions “should have happened a long time ago”—there are no indications that the U.S. is planning to detach from these critical discussions.
