US Envoys Renew Push for Ukraine Peace Talks

US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are due to travel to Kyiv after holding three hours of closed-door talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. The discussions focused on possible next steps toward ending the Russia-Ukraine war, although the White House and Russian officials have not released specific details. US officials described the meeting as productive, while Putin adviser Yuri Ushakov called it constructive and exceptionally frank. He said the talks covered not only the war but also economic issues and potential Russian-American projects, as well as the conflict’s underlying causes and Russia’s claimed battlefield advances. An announcement about the next stage of the negotiations is expected in the coming weeks. The Kyiv visit would be the first trip by President Donald Trump’s leading negotiators to the Ukrainian capital. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he is ready for substantive discussions. Putin and Zelensky have also agreed to a three-day pause in strikes against each other’s capitals. The diplomatic activity comes amid intensified aerial attacks. Russia has increased missile and drone strikes on Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, while Ukraine has targeted Russian economic infrastructure, particularly oil facilities. Ukraine says it is struggling to defend against ballistic missiles because of limited interceptor supplies. Although Russia controls roughly one-fifth of Ukraine, its ground forces have made only slow progress during most of the war and have suffered heavy casualties. The envoys’ route to Kyiv remains unclear because Ukrainian airspace has been closed since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022.

President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner traveled to Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of a renewed U.S. effort to end the war in Ukraine. During the visit, Russia and Ukraine agreed to temporarily halt strikes on each other’s capitals. Russia said Putin ordered a three-day pause in attacks on Kyiv beginning at midnight, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine would refrain from striking Moscow through Monday and expected Russia to reciprocate. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov described the discussions as “extremely frank,” constructive and focused on several American ideas for a potential settlement. A White House official said the delegations discussed substantive plans for next steps that would be announced in the coming weeks, with Witkoff and Kushner expected to continue discussions in Ukraine. Trump said he sent the envoys with a peace proposal and expressed optimism that progress might be possible. The delegation also thanked Putin for the release of U.S. Marine veteran Robert Gilman, who had been imprisoned in Russia since 2022 and was allowed to return home after reportedly suffering serious mistreatment. The Moscow meeting follows earlier talks between Witkoff, Kushner and Putin in December 2025 that Russia characterized as constructive but that produced no breakthrough. Previous U.S. peace efforts later appeared to stall after a U.S. attack on Iran triggered a prolonged conflict. The latest diplomacy is taking place amid continued Russian and Ukrainian missile and drone strikes. Shortly before Trump announced the mission, a Russian drone struck the headquarters of Ukraine’s security service in central Kyiv, the first such attack on the facility since Russia’s full-scale invasion began on February 24, 2022.

US special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as part of renewed diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine. The meeting took place on Saturday evening and focused on what Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov described as “useful” discussions about several ideas for ending the conflict. Putin acknowledged that the situation was complicated, while the White House said the envoys had discussed substantive plans for the next steps toward peace. More details are expected to be announced the following week. The envoys traveled to Russia with a new proposal authorized by President Donald Trump, although Trump did not disclose its contents. It remains unclear whether the plan includes territorial concessions by Ukraine, an issue Trump has previously raised. Following their meeting with Putin, the envoys left Moscow and were expected to travel to Kyiv for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This would be their first visit to Ukraine since Trump’s reelection, despite their previous trips to Moscow. As part of the diplomatic process, Russia and Ukraine agreed to temporary pauses in airstrikes. The Kremlin said Putin ordered Russian forces not to strike Kyiv for three days, beginning at midnight. Zelenskyy had separately committed to suspending Ukrainian airstrikes against cities involved in the negotiations. He said Ukraine was ready to observe the pause after speaking with the US envoys and emphasized that Russia should ensure their safe travel. The talks come as Trump’s campaign promise to end the war on his first day back in office has proven more difficult than expected. The conflict is now in its fifth year, and Trump has previously criticized Ukraine and attributed the continued fighting partly to tensions between the countries’ leaders. The diplomatic meetings represent a new attempt to advance negotiations, but the article provides no evidence that a final agreement has been reached.

The supplied excerpt reports that U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday. The visit was intended to revive peace negotiations involving Russia and Ukraine after nearly eight months in which the talks had been effectively frozen. The article frames the meeting as a diplomatic effort to restart discussions rather than as evidence that an agreement has been reached. It identifies Witkoff and Kushner as representatives of the United States and Putin as the principal Russian participant. Moscow is presented as the location of the meeting, while the broader subject is the stalled Russia-Ukraine peace process. The excerpt does not provide details about the agenda, the specific proposals under discussion, Ukraine’s participation or position, or the outcome of the meeting. It also does not indicate whether the talks produced a breakthrough, established a timetable, or resolved major disagreements. The headline emphasizes pressure to resume peace talks, suggesting an active diplomatic push by the U.S. envoys. However, the available text is too limited to assess the prospects for a settlement or the broader political implications of the visit. This summary is therefore based only on the short content supplied, which appears to be an introductory portion of the full Washington Post article.

The Straits Times presents five international stories reported on Sept 5, 2026. In Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin met US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, at the Kremlin. Putin described the situation in Ukraine as difficult while praising Trump’s efforts to end the four-and-a-half-year war. The meeting followed Trump’s claim that Washington had developed a new peace proposal, although he provided no details. Russian state media reported that the talks lasted about three hours, with no immediate comment from either side. The article also reports an escalation in the US-Iran conflict. The United States said it destroyed three Iranian oil tankers after attempted missile attacks on naval vessels. Iran’s military threatened tougher reprisals, as the two countries remained deadlocked in a six-month war involving control of the Strait of Hormuz and a US counter-blockade of Iranian ports. Washington also announced sanctions intended to further isolate Iran economically. In Algeria, rescuers recovered the body of a 10-year-old boy, identified as Ayoub, after he spent four days trapped in a well. The rescue effort had attracted widespread national attention and social-media appeals, but authorities announced that the child had died. In sport, Enzo Fernandez made an unexpected Manchester City debut after a teammate suffered an injury during the warm-up. Signed from Chelsea for a British record-equalling £125 million, Fernandez helped City secure a 1-0 Premier League victory over Coventry City and delivered an influential performance. Finally, Oasis members Liam and Noel Gallagher arrived at the Venice Film Festival by water taxi ahead of a documentary about their reunion tour. Their upbeat remarks and gestures added a celebratory entertainment story to the otherwise heavily geopolitical roundup.