US envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday for over four hours, marking the latest step in a renewed diplomatic push to address the conflict in Ukraine. The talks occurred as former US President Donald Trump urged Moscow to speed up efforts toward a ceasefire, citing the mounting humanitarian toll.
The Kremlin stated that the meeting focused primarily on pathways to resolve the Ukraine crisis. This was Witkoff’s third discussion with Putin this year. Russian sovereign wealth fund head and special envoy Kirill Dmitriev described the talks as “productive.”
Trump, who is campaigning for a return to the White House, expressed frustration at the slow pace of negotiations. “Russia has to get moving. Too many people are DYING, thousands a week, in a terrible and senseless war,” he posted online Friday.
The meeting follows months of discreet backchannel diplomacy, including a February encounter in Saudi Arabia — the first face-to-face engagement between the two sides since Russia’s full-scale invasion in early 2022.
Meanwhile, Trump’s envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, addressed recent speculation about a proposed division of Ukraine. Responding to a Times report suggesting a post-war Berlin-style arrangement, Kellogg denied advocating any partition. He clarified that his comments referred to a post-ceasefire security presence supporting Ukraine’s sovereignty, not the division of territory.
There was no immediate response from the White House or Ukrainian government regarding the reported talks or proposals.
Zelensky Accuses Russia of Extending War
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, during a visit to his hometown of Kryvyi Rih, blamed Russia for intentionally prolonging the war. His remarks followed a Russian missile strike on April 4 that killed 19 people, including nine children. Zelensky paid tribute at a memorial for the victims.
He further claimed that Chinese nationals were now fighting alongside Russian troops, citing the capture of two Chinese individuals in combat zones. “This shows that Russia is willing to extend the war even using Chinese lives,” Zelensky alleged.
Zelensky once again appealed for increased Western military assistance, particularly in air defense systems. “Only powerful weapons can truly be relied upon when faced with a neighbor like Russia,” he said, noting he had also discussed the issue with Trump. “Ukraine is not just requesting — we’re ready to purchase more systems.”
Trump Repeats Peace Claims
Trump reiterated his long-standing claim that the war in Ukraine would not have happened had he remained president. “A war that should never have happened, and wouldn’t have happened, if I were President!!!” he wrote online.
Reports indicate that Trump and Zelensky have had a tense relationship, including a heated Oval Office exchange during Trump’s prior term.
Earlier efforts by the US to broker a temporary ceasefire in the Black Sea failed, as Russia insisted that sanctions be lifted — a condition Washington rejected.
Diplomatic Momentum Grows
The latest Putin-Witkoff meeting followed earlier discussions between Witkoff and Dmitriev at the Grand Hotel Europe, where a conference on stainless steel and the Russian market was underway. Dmitriev had also visited Washington the previous week — the highest-ranking Russian official to do so since 2022.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov cautioned against expecting immediate results, describing the talks as part of a slow-moving normalization process. When asked about a possible meeting between Putin and Trump, he responded, “Let’s see. It depends on what Witkoff has come with.”
EU Approves New Military Aid Package for Ukraine
In Europe, defense ministers on Friday agreed to provide Ukraine with an additional €21 billion ($24 billion) in military support. Despite the sizable aid package, EU officials acknowledged that prospects for a swift resolution to the war remain dim, citing the absence of meaningful progress.
US and Russia Conduct Prisoner Exchange
Amid the uptick in diplomatic activity, the US and Russia completed a prisoner swap earlier this week. Russian-American Ksenia Karelina, sentenced to 12 years in prison for donating $51 to a Ukrainian charity, was released and has returned to the US.
In exchange, Russia received Arthur Petrov, a dual German-Russian national arrested in Cyprus on charges of illegally exporting microelectronics to Russian defense-linked firms.
