US special envoy Steve Witkoff will visit Moscow next week, a senior Kremlin official confirmed on Wednesday, as efforts intensify to build a consensus between Russia and Ukraine to end their nearly four-year war.
Yuri Ushakov, a foreign affairs adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, insisted Kremlin officials had not yet seen the US peace proposal, even as representatives of the US, Russia and Ukraine held talks in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, earlier this week.
“Contacts are ongoing, including by telephone, but so far no one has discussed every point of it at the round table. That has not happened,” Ushakov told Russian state media.
Trump’s plan to end the war became public last week, following which a round of diplomatic maneuvering began. Initially, it seemed that Russia was placing more emphasis on the demand to stop the attack on its neighbor.
After weekend talks in Geneva between US and Ukrainian officials, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the plan could be “workable”, although key points remain unresolved.
A Ukrainian official said Zelensky hoped to meet Trump in the coming days. Witkoff’s role in the peace effort was back in the spotlight Tuesday after a news report suggested he had briefed Putin aide Ushakov on how the Russian leader should discuss a Ukraine peace plan with Trump. Trump described Witkoff’s alleged approach toward the Russians in the call as “standard” negotiating procedure.