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US Envoys Say Putin Talks Were “Very Constructive,” Sees Opening for Trilateral Format
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US President Donald Trump's envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, outlining a pathway toward renewed peace talks and expressing hope for a trilateral format soon.
The two envoys outlined their assessment during remarks in Kyiv, a day after meeting the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, in Moscow, according to a UNITED24 Media correspondent on September 6.
Kushner told reporters that Washington had consulted both sides about reviving three-way negotiations. "One thing Steve and I really thought would be productive is to go back to the trilateral format," he explained. "We've spoken with both parties, and so hopefully we'll have progress on that very soon."
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Witkoff stated that Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio had dispatched the pair to reopen talks. "The President asked Jared and me to come here and to restart conversations, negotiations, because this is so important to him," he noted.
Kushner characterized the Moscow talks as constructive and substantive, with both delegations posing questions about the elements of a durable settlement.
Witkoff, who has made about eight visits to the Russian capital to meet Putin, emphasized the role of personal ties in ending the war. He and Kushner have traveled there together at least three times. "Relationships are critical in terms of solving conflicts like this," Witkoff declared.
The envoys met Putin first to gauge Moscow's position and briefed Zelenskyy's team on the discussion. Witkoff stated that their task is to bring the two sides together, narrow the issues between them, and build reliable communication channels.
He described the previous 48 hours as a constructive start and expressed confidence in an eventual resolution.
The Kyiv visit was the envoys' first trip to the Ukrainian capital, which they reached by train after their aircraft landed in Poland. Ukraine had readied its airports to receive the delegation by air, but Russian strikes ruled out a direct landing.
At the railway station, they were met by senior Ukrainian officials, including presidential office chief Kyrylo Budanov, his deputy Serhii Kyslytsia, and parliamentary faction leader Davyd Arakhamia.
The timing carries added weight as winter nears, with Moscow calculating that Ukrainian resolve will weaken through the cold months and that Putin's willingness to negotiate will fade until the season ends in mid-March.
The Kyiv talks followed directly from a marathon session in Moscow the previous day. There, Witkoff and Kushner spent more than three hours with Putin—three hours and 10 minutes in all—focused primarily on approaches to ending the war in Ukraine.
Officials on both sides framed the exchange as substantive and unusually frank, and the delegation was reported to have arrived with a range of settlement proposals. The discussions extended beyond Ukraine to potential large-scale US-Russian economic projects.
The Moscow visit unfolded under a temporary arrangement on strikes. Putin had ordered Russian forces to refrain from hitting Kyiv for three days from midnight on September 5, and Zelenskyy signaled Ukraine's readiness to observe a matching halt on cities tied to the negotiations.
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