Ukraine Warupdated 43m ago3 min read
Putin Hosts U.S. Envoy Steve Witkoff in St. Petersburg for Ukraine Peace Talks
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Witkoff met Putin in St. Petersburg to discuss new proposals ending the Ukraine war. Russia released a retired American schoolteacher during the St. Petersburg talks.
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Witkoff meets Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff in St. Petersburg to discuss new proposals for ending the war in Ukraine, with Witkoff’s ninth meeting with Putin taking place at the Constantine Palace.
Witkoff arrived in Russia after conducting what a U.S. official called "constructive" talks in Oslo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the leaders of Finland and Norway, and European and NATO representatives.
Putin signaled goodwill during the encounter by releasing a retired U.S. schoolteacher held in Russia, and Putin told Witkoff that Stephen Hubbard was at the airport waiting to fly back to the U.S.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Witkoff’s meeting with Zelenskyy was positive and that Witkoff would share the results with Russia, adding, "He will now, armed with those ideas, be able to go to St. Petersburg and share them with the Russian side."
Trump, meanwhile, told reporters on the eve of the talks in Russia that Zelenskyy was going to have to want to make a deal, warning, "I don't think his people are going to stand for it any longer."
Oslo optimism, Kyiv worries
Zelenskyy described the Oslo talks as productive and said they included "strong" security guarantees for Ukraine after a ceasefire, while also saying he was "grateful" that the US had resumed sharing intelligence with Ukraine.
Witkoff told Putin he hoped trilateral talks can resume, saying, "I’m hoping that you might consider that as a next step in the peace process so we can begin to have technical teams discussing what those next steps are," as Russia and the United States moved toward St. Petersburg.
Kyiv said Moscow’s strikes killed at least four people, including two in the capital and an elderly couple in the eastern Kharkiv region, as Witkoff arrived in Saint Petersburg.
Trump’s public pressure on Zelenskyy continued as he said, "If he does not, it's gonna be a very bad thing," while the Kyiv Post described Zelenskyy thanking Washington for the resumption of US intelligence sharing on Russian strikes.
The Kremlin signaled limits on what it would accept, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov saying Russia would listen to US proposals but ruled out political concessions, according to TASS.
Diesel deal and next steps
The talks in St. Petersburg unfolded alongside Russia’s announcement that it would soon begin shipments of diesel to the United States under a deal with Trump, and Witkoff told Putin that Washington was "grateful" for the diesel deal.
The Daily Sabah account said Ukraine complained that since the diesel deal it faced disruption to some intelligence sharing and to its use of the Starlink military satellite system, while Zelenskyy said Tuesday’s Oslo meeting had reached an agreement to resolve those issues.
The i Paper said Zelenskyy revealed that the US had resumed sharing intelligence with Ukraine, describing it as "extremely important for our people, for children and adults," because it provides a signal when ballistic missiles are approaching.
The Telegraph reported that Stephen Hubbard, 74, was freed during peace talks and that Putin told Witkoff Hubbard was waiting at the city’s Pulkovo airport after his release.
The next diplomatic step centered on whether Putin would consider resuming three-way talks, with Witkoff saying he had a new Ukraine peace plan to present to Putin and hoping there was "a basis for a ceasefire".