Moscow Meeting Signals Renewed Effort
Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet US special envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow on Tuesday. The White House says it feels very optimistic about progress toward ending the war in Ukraine. Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law and informal adviser, will also attend.
The meeting follows two days of talks in Florida between Ukrainian and US officials. Witkoff and Kushner worked on refining a US-backed peace plan once seen as favourable to Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the talks as constructive but pointed to significant unresolved issues.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Putin will meet Witkoff on Tuesday afternoon. After his meeting with Emmanuel Macron in Paris, Zelensky stressed that Ukraine’s sovereignty and strong security guarantees remain essential priorities. He said the territorial issue remains the toughest part of the deal because the Kremlin still demands Ukrainian concessions in the east. Kyiv rejects this firmly.
Conflicting Claims from the Frontlines
The talks in Moscow follow Russian claims that they captured Pokrovsk and the border town of Vovchansk. Ukrainian officials denied such losses. Open-source intelligence projects said neither location had been fully taken by Russian forces.
Andriy Kovalenko, who leads Ukraine’s disinformation response centre, said Russia aims to shift all pressure in the US peace plan onto Ukraine. Russia has been trying to seize Pokrovsk for almost a year and a half and released a video showing Putin visiting a command post. In the clip, he said Russia had made progress in an important area.
Before travelling to Moscow, Witkoff met UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, President Zelensky, and Ukraine’s chief negotiator Rustem Umerov. Several European leaders joined the Zelensky-Macron talks online. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the peace draft had been significantly refined. She said the administration felt optimistic and hoped the war would end soon.
Putin said last week that he had reviewed a US draft that could serve as a basis for a future agreement. Kremlin officials later questioned whether Moscow would accept it after Kyiv and European partners pushed through changes.
Peace Plan Faces Strong Pushback
An early US-Russia draft from November caused alarm in Kyiv and across Europe. It favoured Russian demands and laid out how frozen Russian assets in Europe should be used. It also set conditions for Ukraine’s access to European markets.
Macron said on Monday that no final peace plan exists. He stressed that any proposal must involve both Ukraine and Europe. He said Zelensky alone can decide on territorial matters. Macron also noted that European states must be included in decisions about security guarantees, frozen assets, and Ukraine’s EU path.
He praised US efforts to end the conflict, which began with Russia’s seizure of Crimea in 2014 and escalated with the full invasion in 2022. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said this week could prove decisive but warned that Russia wants to negotiate only with actors willing to grant extra concessions. She said pressure often falls on the weaker side because ending the war seems simpler if Ukraine yields. She stressed that such an outcome serves no one’s interests.
Key Issues Still Divide Both Sides
Russia has sometimes engaged with US mediation attempts, yet several Russian demands violate Ukraine’s sovereignty. These demands remain unacceptable for Kyiv. The territorial dispute continues to be the biggest obstacle. Security guarantees also stir disagreement. Ukraine and European partners want firm guarantees, including possible NATO membership, to prevent future attacks. Russia rejects this outright, and Donald Trump also opposes allowing Ukraine to join the alliance.
