Ukraine War08 May, 20263 min read
Zelensky Speaks With Trump Envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Accelerate Ukraine Peace Talks
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Zelensky spoke with Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to accelerate Ukraine peace talks. The talks aimed to reinvigorate diplomacy and move toward ending the war with Russia.
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Zelensky calls Trump envoys
President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with US President Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner on Wednesday, July 21, saying the call aimed to accelerate diplomacy and move closer to ending Russia’s war against Ukraine. Zelensky said the conversation centered on intensifying diplomatic momentum, and that both sides agreed their respective teams would remain in close contact to build further on what was discussed. Zelensky wrote, “Peace is needed – peace with dignity, and Ukraine has long been ready for this,” as he thanked Witkoff and Kushner personally and also expressed gratitude towards Trump and the American people for their continued backing of Ukraine.
The call came after months of on-and-off diplomacy between Kyiv and Washington, with efforts led by Trump to broker a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia stalling as US attention shifted toward the conflict with Iran. In parallel, the Kremlin hardened its position on occupied Ukrainian territory, dropping earlier plans to return parts of the occupied Sumy and Kharkiv regions as part of any future peace deal.
Diplomacy freeze and battlefield
The Kyiv Independent described the July 22 call as taking place amid a six-month freeze in peace negotiations among Kyiv, Moscow, and Washington, with no trilateral talks since meeting in Abu Dhabi in February. Zelensky’s summary of the conversation was short on details, but he said the teams planned to “remain in close contact...to continue owrking on everything we discussed.” DW reported that the discussion came after Ukrainian attacks on Wildberries, with the company saying several people were injured in Ukrainian attacks on its warehouses.
DW also quoted Zelensky on X, writing, “Today, Ukraine's long-range sanctions successfully struck important targets in Russia's Krasnodar and Stavropol regions – logistics hubs involved in supplying the Russian army with drone components, navigation equipment, and other gear.” While Zelensky pushed diplomacy, the Kyiv Post said Moscow’s Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin had mocked Zelensky’s public call for direct talks as “rude” and insisted their “meeting would be pointless.”
Patriot license and next talks
The Kyiv Post said Trump announced at the latest NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, on July 8 that Washington would grant Ukraine a license to manufacture its own Patriot defense systems, while his administration confirmed it is also discussing Kyiv’s ability to strike deeper inside Russia.
The Kyiv Independent added that Zelensky met in person with U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matt Whitaker to discuss deliveries of Patriot missiles and the pending U.S.-Ukraine Drone Deal, with Whitaker traveling to Kyiv alongside U.S. General Curtis Buzzard.
RBC-Ukraine reported that Zelensky and Trump’s envoys discussed ideas for resuming negotiations with Russia, citing Axios correspondent Barak Ravid and a comment from Ukrainian presidential adviser Dmytro Lytvyn.
RBC-Ukraine also said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced he is scheduled to meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on July 23, with finding possible ways to end the war listed as a key topic.
Against that diplomatic backdrop, the Kyiv Post said Moscow rules out returning occupied Ukrainian territory, and it described a proposed framework requiring Ukraine to abandon its NATO ambitions, renounce nuclear weapons, restrict foreign troops and weapons, and reduce its armed forces to 85,000 personnel.