image source, EPA
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US President Donald Trump’s ambassadors Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as part of a diplomatic tour that includes Kiev and aims to end the war in Ukraine.
On Saturday, Putin called contacts between Moscow and Washington “always fruitful” and expressed his country’s satisfaction with cooperation with Vitkov and Kushner.
Vitkov said that Trump had sent his greetings to Putin and thanked him for ending the strikes during the visit of the American delegation, while the Russian president stressed that his country would do everything to ensure the safety of the ambassadors.
Russia and Ukraine announced a three-day freeze on strikes on Moscow and Kiev, coinciding with a visit by US ambassadors to the two capitals in Washington’s latest attempt to end the war.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the official TASS news agency that the decision to suspend the strikes was made “as part of preparations for the contacts that the Americans will make in Kiev.”
Vitkov and Kushner arrived in Moscow on Saturday before traveling to Kiev on Sunday to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Trump told reporters that the two ambassadors had presented a “proposal to end the war,” without disclosing its details.
Photos released by Russian media show Vitkov and Kushner arriving at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport, where they were received by Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev.
image source, Reuters
On the other hand, Zelensky announced on Saturday Ukraine’s readiness to refrain from targeting Moscow until the end of Monday, provided that Russia does the same to Kiev.
He said: “From now until the end of Saturday, as well as Sunday and Monday, Ukraine is ready to refrain from striking against Moscow, and we expect the Russians to do the same against Kiev.
He added that he had spoken to US ambassadors who had “already started working with the Russian side”, stressing Kiev’s readiness to hold “serious talks” when the US delegation arrives in the Ukrainian capital on Sunday.
Witkoff and Kushner have visited Moscow several times since Trump’s return to the White House, but their upcoming visit to Kiev will be their first.
Over the past eighteen months, Ukrainian delegations have participated in rounds of talks hosted by the United States, but American efforts have yet to produce an agreement between Moscow and Kiev.
image source, EPA
Strikes precede Putin’s decision
The decision of the Russian president about a short truce is coming Amid tensions over Ukraine’s proposed ceasefire on the front line, which coincides with a tour of US ambassadors.
Peskov confirmed that Moscow had received notification of the initiative, saying that “this information has already been provided by the Ukrainian side.” But Kiev accused Russian forces of not enforcing the ceasefire and indicated that their attacks would continue through the night.
On Saturday morning, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the launch of missile and drone strikes in several regions of Ukraine, including the Kiev region.
The ministry said its forces carried out a “massive strike” on Friday night, using high-precision ground weapons and long-range attack drones.
He added that the attacks targeted metal factories in the Dnipropetrovsk region, which he said belonged to Ukraine’s military industry, in addition to logistics centers and power plants in the city of Mykolaiv and Mykolaiv and Odesa regions.
The ministry said in a separate statement that the Russian Air Defense intercepted and destroyed 53 Ukrainian drones over the Moscow region, Krasnodar Territory and other regions.
On the other hand, Zelensky said that Russian forces had carried out what he called “demonstrational” strikes on the airports of Kiev and Boryspil before the visit of the American delegation.
The Ukrainian president believed that the attacks came in response to discussions and preparations related to the possibility of ambassadors traveling to Ukraine by air and landing at one of the two airports.
Zelensky pledged to ensure the safety of Russian airspace during Vitkov and Kushner’s stay in Moscow, and called on Russia to provide a similar guarantee during his visit to Kiev.
It is not yet clear how US ambassadors will travel from Moscow to Kiev, knowing that Ukrainian airspace has been closed since Russia launched an all-out invasion in February 2022.
Moscow lowers expectations
image source, Reuters
Despite the new American move, the ambassadors’ arrival was preceded by statements from Russian officials downplaying the chances of quick progress amid continuing disagreements over the basis of any possible settlement.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said the success of the mission depended on the US administration’s willingness to work towards what he described as a “real solution” that takes into account “the facts on the ground”.
He added that the situation on the ground is constantly changing, given that these changes are not in the interests of Kyiv.
Ryabkov also criticized what he described as changes in America’s position since the August 2025 summit between Putin and Trump in Alaska.
According to him, there are still questions about the extent to which Washington is ready to adhere to the framework discussed at the summit and not be influenced by the parties opposed to the settlement.
For his part, Rodion Miroshnik, a special representative in the Russian Foreign Ministry, accused Zelensky and his European allies of trying to obstruct dialogue between Moscow and Washington. According to him, the Russian-American communications are a “disturbing factor” for them.
As for Russia’s First Channel, he said that the proposals presented by Vitkov and Kushner are “not new”.
The ambassadors’ tour comes more than a week after CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a rare visit to Moscow.
Neither Washington nor the Russian president disclosed the content of their talks, and Trump described the meeting as “almost routine.”
The United States, Russia and Ukraine have spoken separately about progress toward ending the war after a series of talks brokered by Washington last year. Ukraine’s European allies also held meetings in Paris, but they ended without a breakthrough.
Issues of territory and security guarantees demanded by Kiev remain at the heart of the dispute between the two sides, as Russia and Ukraine have stepped up airstrikes in recent months.
Kiev says the lack of interceptor missiles limits its ability to counter Russian attacks, while Ukrainian forces have focused their strikes inside Russia on targets linked to economic infrastructure.
