US special envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg on Wednesday to discuss the war in Ukraine, as US President Donald Trump steps up pressure on Kyiv to reach an agreement to end the fighting.
Speaking at the beginning of the meeting, Witkoff said he hoped to discuss the resumption of trilateral negotiations involving the United States, Russia and Ukraine, allowing technical teams to consider the next steps towards a peace settlement.
Putin thanked Trump and Witkoff for their efforts to end the conflict.
The meeting came a day after Witkoff held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and several European leaders in Oslo, the Norwegian capital.
The back-to-back meetings signalled renewed efforts to advance US-led diplomatic initiatives to end the war, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than four and a half years ago.
However, the Trump administration’s efforts to broker a settlement since early last year have yet to produce significant progress, and there was no immediate indication of a breakthrough.
Russia and Ukraine remain divided over the terms of a possible settlement, while their forces continue fighting on the battlefield and carrying out daily long-range strikes against each other.
Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who attended the Oslo meeting, said late Tuesday that the discussions had made “genuine progress.”
Witkoff sees momentum in peace efforts
Witkoff and Putin met at Constantine Palace in St Petersburg, with Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev and Putin’s foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov also attending. Witkoff said Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner would participate in the discussions through a video link.
Witkoff described the previous day’s talks in Oslo as productive and said there was “some degree of momentum” in the peace efforts. He said he would brief Putin on the discussions.
He also thanked Putin for lifting Russia’s ban on diesel exports, saying the move would help lower costs for US farmers and truckers. The decision had drawn criticism from some US lawmakers.
Putin said Moscow was prepared to discuss restoring economic ties with Washington. He also expressed readiness to discuss the US-led conflict with Iran, saying Russia could use its special relationship with Tehran to help bring about peace.
Meanwhile, Putin was scheduled to meet Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Wednesday. Li was in St Petersburg for meetings with senior Russian officials, according to the Kremlin.
Russia has strengthened its ties with China in recent years. Last month, the two countries vetoed a US proposal at the United Nations to allow experts to continue monitoring sanctions on Iran.
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