Trump envoys prepare Moscow and Kyiv peace talks

U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected to travel to Moscow and Kyiv this weekend as Washington tries to revive talks aimed at ending Russia’s war in Ukraine, even as fresh Russian strikes hit Ukrainian cities, including the headquarters of Ukraine’s SBU security service in Kyiv.

Axios reported, citing U.S. officials, that the envoys will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday before holding talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Sunday. Russia’s state news agency TASS said Witkoff and Kushner were expected in Moscow and then Kyiv on Sept. 5-6, quoting a source. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to confirm the schedule, telling reporters: “I wouldn’t announce anything, but when these contacts take place, we will inform you.”

Zelenskyy said Thursday that “tentative dates have been set” and that U.S. negotiators would be in Kyiv “in the coming days.” In a later address, he said Ukraine’s negotiating team was in near-constant contact with the U.S. side and was preparing for talks.

“They confirmed they will have a meeting in Moscow and another one in Kyiv. We expect the latter to take place in the coming days. This is very important. It is important that America remain actively engaged,” Zelenskyy said, adding that Ukraine is ready for substantive, high-level negotiations.

Witkoff and Kushner, President Donald Trump’s envoys, have led his effort to broker a peace deal. Kushner is Trump’s son-in-law, while Al Jazeera described Witkoff as Trump’s real estate partner. The two have visited Russia multiple times, most recently in January, according to Al Jazeera, but the expected talks would be their first in Ukraine. Washington’s mediation efforts had largely stalled since the U.S. and Israel launched war on Iran in March, Al Jazeera reported.

The diplomatic push comes despite a wide gap between Moscow and Kyiv. Putin told an economic forum in Russia’s Far East on Thursday that a deal remained possible but said Moscow and Kyiv must first reach agreement between themselves.

“We are grateful to everyone attempting to contribute to a settlement,” he said, according to Reuters. “Is there a chance? In my view, yes, there is.”

Putin did not indicate any retreat from demands that include further territorial concessions from Ukraine. Kyiv and its European allies have repeatedly rejected those terms, saying they amount to capitulation. Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov previously said that “reaching a long-term settlement can’t be expected without solving the territorial issue.”

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said he saw a “new dynamic” in peace efforts, with more active political and diplomatic engagement.

But attacks continued. Zelenskyy said Friday that a Russian drone struck the office of Oleksandr Poklad, the head of Ukraine’s SBU security service, in Kyiv. Poklad appeared to be unharmed, the BBC reported. Zelenskyy said he had ordered Poklad to respond “adequately” to the attack.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said at least five people were wounded in the strike on the SBU headquarters. Al Jazeera also reported that Klitschko said at least nine people, seven of them medical personnel, were injured in a Russian drone attack on Kyiv’s Shevchenkivskyi district Friday.

Sybiha called the SBU strike “a major escalation that demands resolute responses.” He wrote on social media: “Moscow launched this strike during a renewed push for peace – laying bare its true rejection of diplomacy.”

Elsewhere, regional head Oleh Kiper said a “massive” overnight Russian attack on the southern Odesa region killed one person and injured at least five others, including a child. Officials said strikes in Dnipro killed two police officers. Ukraine, meanwhile, continued attacks on Russian energy infrastructure and other economic targets, and regional officials said a large Ukrainian drone strike hit Sochi and nearby Sirius, where fires were reported.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and currently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory.