Putin pauses Ukraine strikes after Kusher, Witkoff meeting
Hudson Institute senior fellow Rebeccah Heinrichs analyzes Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff’s diplomatic efforts in Ukraine. She also reacts to U.S. military strikes against three Iranian oil tankers to deter hostile actions in the region.
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U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Kyiv on Sunday for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a day after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as part of efforts to end the war between the two countries.
Zelenskyy said Sunday morning that he had met with his negotiating team ahead of the Americans’ arrival and that Kyiv was prepared for the discussions.
“Ukraine has always been and will remain constructive,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “We are interested in bringing the end of the war closer. Peace is needed. Security guarantees are needed. A dignified character of the postwar peace is needed.”
“Our proposals are ready,” he added. “It is important to work in a coordinated, substantive, and realistic manner.”
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Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, center, and U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoys Jared Kushner, right, and Steve Witkoff, left, walk prior to their talks in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
Witkoff and Kushner met with Putin for more than three hours behind closed doors Saturday, though the talks ended without any announced breakthroughs.
Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov described the meeting as “constructive, frank and useful,” but did not disclose specific outcomes.
A White House official said following the meeting that the two sides discussed “substantive plans for next steps,” which are expected to be announced in the coming weeks. The official added that the U.S. delegation looked forward to “equally productive meetings” in Ukraine.
The Kyiv meeting comes as Washington seeks to revive efforts to reach a settlement in a war that began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Those efforts had lost momentum over the past six months as U.S. attention shifted to the war with Iran.
President Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff, left, and Jared Kushner, right, arrive in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
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Significant differences between Moscow and Kyiv remain, including over territory. Kyiv has rejected Russia’s demand that Ukraine withdraw from portions of the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions that remain under Ukrainian control.
President Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff, right, and Jared Kushner smile waiting for the talks with President Vladimir Putin at the Senate Palace of the Kremlin in Moscow, on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik/Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Ushakov said Moscow provided the U.S. delegation with its “comprehensive assessment” of the battlefield during Saturday’s meeting, though the discussions extended beyond the war.
“Economic issues and potentially large, mutually beneficial joint projects for Russia and America were discussed in considerable detail,” Ushakov said.
President Vladimir Putin, background center, attends talks with U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff, foreground left, back to camera, and Jared Kushner, foreground right, back to camera, at the Senate Palace of the Kremlin in Moscow, on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (Mikhail Metzel/Sputnik/Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
President Donald Trump said Friday that he dispatched Witkoff and Kushner, his son-in-law and adviser, to determine whether progress toward a peace agreement could be made.
“We have an idea for peace. I sent Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, two great negotiators,” Trump told reporters. “They’ve done a great job, and we sent them over to see whether or not we can get something done. And there may be a good chance that we’ll do it.”
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The diplomatic push comes as Russia and Ukraine continue to exchange drone and missile attacks. Both sides reported strikes overnight into Sunday despite agreeing to pause attacks on each other’s capitals during the negotiations.
Fox News Digital’s Robert McGreevy and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
