Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held a "detailed" and "constructive" conversation with United States Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and White House adviser Jared Kushner, son-in-law of President Donald Trump, about negotiations to end the conflict with Russia. Zelensky stated that dialogue between the US and Ukrainian negotiation teams is ongoing and that work is being defined to establish the dates of a visit to Ukraine.
During the conversation, Zelensky informed the American envoys about the situation on the front line, stating that "Russia's progress has been limited" and cost Moscow "enormous losses." The Ukrainian leader thanked the envoys and President Trump for "working to make peace our shared achievement."
The trip by Witkoff and Kushner to Ukraine was scheduled for August but has not yet taken place. Some media outlets attributed the delay to the increase in Russian airstrikes on the Ukrainian capital, which can only be reached by train or road, since Ukraine suspended all civilian flights since the beginning of the war.
This conversation also came after CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a lightning visit to Moscow, where he reportedly proposed to the Russians organizing a meeting between Trump, Zelensky and Putin. The Kremlin again ruled out this negotiation format, unless it is to sign a final peace agreement. In recent weeks, Russian and Ukrainian forces have intensified drone attacks, with nearly 1,500 drones fired at territories under Ukrainian government control and 1,400 drones launched over the Russian capital.
