US envoy Witkoff to meet Putin as Trump presses Ukraine to settle war
US envoy Steve Witkoff will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday after what a US official called 'constructive' talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Oslo. President Donald Trump said it was time for Ukraine to end the war, as relations between Washington and Kyiv have
US envoy Steve Witkoff will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday after what a US official called “constructive” talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Norway, as President Donald Trump said it was time for Ukraine to end the war.
The US official said Ukraine brought forward new ideas and proposals to the Oslo talks, which also involved the leaders of Norway and Finland and European and NATO representatives, and that participants made “meaningful progress” toward a coordinated approach to engaging Russia. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the talks covered “key elements of a comprehensive peace framework,” including security guarantees for Ukraine, a post-war economic plan and a broader European security architecture. Mr. Witkoff would aim to “create a pathway toward direct trilateral and broader multilateral negotiations,” the official said.
Mr. Zelenskiy traveled to Oslo seeking to repair relations with Washington, which have sunk to new lows as Mr. Trump has courted Moscow. Kyiv has complained that Washington has withheld vital military support and intelligence. Mr. Zelenskiy told a news conference after the Oslo meeting and an earlier phone call with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Ukraine was again receiving early warnings of Russian missile attacks. “Now it works, it’s great,” he said, adding he and Mr. Rubio had discussed supplies of Patriot missile interceptors as well as the satellite-based Starlink system, which Kyiv complained had stopped working when mounted on fast-moving objects such as drones.
Mr. Trump’s recent gestures toward Moscow, including a deal to buy Russian diesel and a waiver of new sanctions, sparked bipartisan pushback in the US Congress and worry in European capitals. On Tuesday, Mr. Trump called on Ukraine to make a deal to settle the war, and said Moscow wanted to get it done. “Ukraine has to want to settle this war,” he told reporters. Mr. Trump suggested Moscow had the upper hand in the fight because “Russia is a big machine — they just keep grinding forward, and that’s what they’ve done. They’ve taken a very large piece of land.”
Mr. Rubio acknowledged on Tuesday that a consignment of interceptors bought by European countries for Ukraine may not have been delivered, but denied that the US had changed policy. “There has not been some deliberate political directive to go out and harm Ukraine,” he said on a visit to India. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters US policy toward Ukraine had not changed and stressed the need to maintain US stockpiles. “Certainly, with things like interceptors, we want to make sure our guys have the most possible as well,” he said.
While US ties with Ukraine have deteriorated, Russia has stepped up attacks on Ukrainian cities, particularly targeting power stations and fuel, despite a call from Mr. Trump for both sides to spare each other’s energy systems. Russia bombarded cities in western Ukraine overnight, targeting electricity systems and knocking out power across swathes of the country that had previously been spared. The deterioration of US-Ukraine relations began 10 days ago when Mr. Trump lifted sanctions on Russian diesel in a deal agreed with Mr. Putin. Mr. Trump said this would help reduce high fuel prices that have upset US voters ahead of midterm elections on November 3.
