U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, following calls from former President Donald Trump urging Russia to push forward on securing a ceasefire in Ukraine.
This marks Witkoff’s third meeting with Putin this year, with Washington still struggling to convince Moscow to agree to a full ceasefire with Kyiv. Trump, who has repeatedly voiced his frustration over the slow progress of peace talks, posted on social media Friday: “Russia has to get moving. Too many people are DYING, thousands a week, in a terrible and senseless war.”
The high-level meeting in St. Petersburg coincided with a major gathering of Ukraine’s allies in Brussels, where the UK and Germany co-hosted a summit resulting in a commitment of €21 billion (£18.2 billion) in military assistance for Ukraine by a coalition of 50 nations.
Ahead of the talks in Russia, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov tempered expectations, stating there was “no need to expect breakthroughs” and that the “process of normalising relations is ongoing.”
