WorldPosted at: Nov 12 2026 11:33PM


Putin meets US aides Kushner and Witkoff in Moscow for peace talks on Ukraine

Moscow, Nov 12 (UNI) Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Moscow on Thursday, following two days of negotiations between Russia, Ukraine and the US in Abu Dhabi.
Kremlin aides Vladimir Medinsky and Yury Ushakov, as well as Putin's investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, also attended the meeting, which later moved into a closed session.
According to TASS, Putin opened the discussions by asking the American envoys to convey his gratitude to President Donald Trump for facilitating contact between Moscow and Kyiv. He also highlighted progress on humanitarian issues.
Witkoff said the planned prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine demonstrated progress towards a possible settlement.
Putin proposed building on the humanitarian efforts by organising an operation to evacuate civilians from Konstantinovka, modelled on a recent evacuation in Alyoshki. He suggested that the Russian and Ukrainian human rights commissioners coordinate the operation.
Putin said Russian forces controlled Konstantinovka and could guarantee the evacuation team's safety, but would need five days to clear mines in the area. If Kyiv maintained that it controlled the city, it should take responsibility for ensuring security from its side, he added.
Turning to a potential peace settlement, Putin said he wanted an agreement that would ensure lasting peace in Ukraine. He maintained that Russia recognised only one dividing line with Ukraine - the national border - and said Moscow was aware of Ukrainian discussions about possible "grey zones".
He also ruled out the deployment of foreign troops to Ukraine, warning that any such forces would be considered legitimate targets.
The role of Western European countries in the peace process was another subject of discussion. Witkoff said European representatives had not participated directly in the Abu Dhabi negotiations but had been briefed on their progress.
Kushner said European governments had expressed interest in joining the negotiations and ending the conflict. Washington had begun discussions with them on the continent's future security arrangements, he added.
European representatives held separate consultations with US and Ukrainian officials in Abu Dhabi rather than taking part in the trilateral discussions. Kushner has argued that Europe should be included in the process, suggesting that European governments select a single representative.
Ushakov said on Thursday that European countries had yet to agree on a suitable negotiator. Moscow, he added, was prepared to consider concrete peace proposals from Europe but had not received any.
The US envoys arrived at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport on Thursday morning, where they were received by Dmitriev. Asked about their mood, the Russian envoy described it as positive.
The visit followed the first formal trilateral negotiations involving Russia, Ukraine and the US since February.
Medinsky, who led the Russian delegation in Abu Dhabi, said European security had been a central theme of the discussions. He added that the parties had found common ground on some issues, although significant differences remained.
Medinsky also confirmed an agreement in principle on a large-scale prisoner exchange, which was separately confirmed by Kushner and Ukrainian chief negotiator Rustem Umerov. The final number of prisoners involved was yet to be determined.
Territorial disputes remain a major obstacle to an agreement. Medinsky told RT that "every inch of our land will be returned to Russia, one way or another", though Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has rejected demands for Kyiv to withdraw its forces from Donbas. Kushner regarded the territorial issue as the most difficult to resolve.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said Putin would explain Moscow's position to the American envoys, after which Washington would need to persuade its European partners to reconsider their approach.
He accused European governments of showing little willingness to exercise common sense while continuing to support Kyiv.
Kushner had previously said that he and Witkoff would travel to Dublin after their Moscow visit to brief Zelensky on the discussions.
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