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Pause for talks
Russian President Vladimir Putin met at the Kremlin with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner for more than three hours on Saturday as a 72-hour pause in strikes on Kyiv began at midnight.
“Putin has ordered that no strikes be carried out against Kyiv for three days, starting at midnight today.”
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told state media that "Putin has ordered that no strikes be carried out against Kyiv for three days, starting at midnight today."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine would refrain from strikes on Moscow during the envoys’ visit, and the Christian Science Monitor reported that both leaders agreed to pause strikes on each other’s capitals while the talks took place.
The talks were described by Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov as "substantive, constructive, exceptionally candid, and conducted in a spirit of trust," after the meeting ended without announcements of any breakthroughs, according to ABC News.
Reuters reported that the envoys were due to meet Zelenskiy in Kyiv on Sunday after flying out of Moscow soon after the talks.
No breakthrough, more talks
After the Kremlin meeting, Reuters said Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov gave no indication of any breakthrough while describing the talks as "highly useful" and saying Americans Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner "outlined a number of ideas regarding possible avenues for a settlement."
The Associated Press reported that Ushakov described the discussions as constructive, frank and useful to journalists afterward, but did not talk about specific outcomes, and said the meeting ended without announcements of any breakthroughs.
In televised remarks at the start of the talks, Putin praised President Donald Trump’s efforts to end the war, saying, "Understanding that he is entering a difficult situation, he nevertheless does not stop his efforts to help bring about a settlement."
Ushakov said the talks went beyond exchanging views on resolving the Ukrainian crisis, with Reuters quoting him that "Economic issues and potential major, mutually beneficial Russian-American projects were discussed in some detail."
The BBC reported that on Sunday the envoys would travel to Kyiv for more talks, their first such visit to Ukraine’s capital, after Putin told them the current situation "is not so easy."
Escalation and stakes
Even as the capitals’ strike pause was ordered, the Christian Science Monitor said both sides continued to escalate aerial attacks, and it linked Russia’s overnight strikes on Kyiv and Boryspil international airports to the planned U.S. visit.
“Clearly, these Russian strikes on the airports are a reaction to the discussions and preparations”
Zelenskyy said on Saturday, "Clearly, these Russian strikes on the airports are a reaction to the discussions and preparations for the possibility of the U.S. side using an aircraft to travel to Ukraine," and he added that there would be no threats to diplomacy from Ukraine’s side.
Reuters reported that over the previous 10 days Russia had pounded the Ukrainian capital day and night with missiles and drones, including an attack on Friday on the headquarters of the SBU security service.
The BBC said Putin also told the envoys that Russia had not agreed to a ceasefire for the rest of Ukraine outside of the capital, and it reported that Russia still controls about one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.
Reuters described a "vast gulf" between Russia and Ukraine on how to end the war, noting that the Kremlin said Putin’s position that Ukraine should cede the entire territory of four regions claimed by Russia and abandon its plan to join NATO was "unshakeable."