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U.S. envoys in Moscow as Russia and Ukraine vow not to hit capitals during talks

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AFP. (2026, September 5). U.S. envoys in Moscow as Russia and Ukraine vow not to hit capitals during talks. National Post. https://nationalpost.com/news/u-s-envoys-in-moscow-as-russia-and-ukraine-vow-not-to-hit-capitals-during-talks

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National Post · collected 2026-09-05 · by AFP

Quick Summary

US President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and business ally Steve Witkoff visited Moscow on Saturday to discuss a proposal to end the four-year war between Russia and Ukraine. The US envoys are expected to head to Kyiv on Sunday, where they will meet with Ukrainian officials. Both Russia and Ukraine have vowed not to strike each other's capitals during the talks. According to President Vladimir Putin, Russian forces will refrain from attacking Kyiv for three days starting from midnight Saturday.
Written by AI on 2026-09-05, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

US President Donald Trump has announced that his special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, will visit Russia and Ukraine this weekend as part of efforts to end the war between the two countries. According to Trump, the envoys will be bringing a proposal aimed at ending the war, although he did not elaborate on what the proposal entails. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed that he will meet with the envoys on Sunday after they visit Moscow on Saturday to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The visits come amid ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine, which have been fighting for several years. The war has resulted in significant human suffering and economic losses, and efforts to broker a peace deal have been ongoing for some time.

Trump's announcement was made in the Oval Office on Friday, where he also stated that his administration had an "idea for peace" but did not provide further details. Witkoff and Kushner are expected to meet with Zelensky and other Ukrainian officials during their visit to Kyiv, although there have been reports of concerns over safety due to Russian warnings.

In a separate development, Trump has also said that he wants European countries to pay back the US for military aid and munitions previously sent to Ukraine, which were provided free of charge. This comes amid concerns over depleted US stockpiles of ammunition, particularly in light of ongoing conflicts with Iran.

The visits by Witkoff and Kushner are seen as a significant development in efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. However, it remains unclear whether a lasting peace agreement can be reached given the complex nature of the conflict.

Written for “US Peace Efforts in Ukraine” on 2026-10-30, grounded in this article and the 66 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 US Peace Efforts in Ukraine
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This article reads unscored and hedges 16% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
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How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
25
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
16%
4 of 25 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
60/100
National Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
67
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-05 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

National Post · 1233 article(s) · 2 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 2 correction(s)
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2026-09-27
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Who wrote this

AFP
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Topics

Kyiv Moscow Russian U.S. Ukraine

Subjects

Kyiv GPE · 11× U.S. GPE · 9× Moscow GPE · 7× Russian NORP · 7× Ukraine GPE · 6× Russia GPE · 5× Kushner PERSON · 4× Ukrainian NORP · 4× Witkoff PERSON · 4× Zelensky PERSON · 4×

Narrative

“Clearly, these Russian strikes on the airports are a reaction to the discussions and preparations for the possibility of the U.S. side using an aircraft to travel to Ukraine,” Zelensky said on X. It will be the first time that Witkoff and Kushner have visited Kyiv since Trump returned to office last year with a pledge to resolve the conflict. Travelling to Kyiv by plane would be a highly unusual move, with Ukrainian airspace closed since 2022 because of the war.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-05
🔮 U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were in Moscow Saturday and expected to head to Kyiv the next day, with Russia and Ukraine vowing not to strike each others’ capitals during talks on ending more than four years of war.
2026-09-05 · National Post
U.S. envoys in Moscow as Russia and Ukraine vow not to hit capitals during talks · assertive framing

Claims (25 extracted, 4 hedged)

U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were in Moscow Saturday and expected to head to Kyiv the next day, with Russia and Ukraine vowing not to strike each others’ capitals during talks on ending more than four years of war. asserted
Russia → expect → war
U.S. President Donald Trump earlier said his son-in-law Kushner and business ally Witkoff were bringing “a proposal to end the war.” asserted
Kushner → say → war
The envoys are expected to head for their first visit to Kyiv Sunday, in Washington’s latest bid to break a diplomatic stalemate in Europe’s deadliest conflict since the Second World War. asserted
envoys → expect → War
Both the Kremlin and Kyiv vowed not to strike their main cities during the talks, after months of escalating attacks. asserted
Kremlin → vow → attacks
“The Russian president, the commander-in-chief, has given the order from midnight tonight not to strike Kyiv for three days,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. asserted
Peskov → give → days
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — who had offered a truce during the U.S. visits — later said he had spoken to the U.S. envoys and also promised Kyiv would not strike Moscow. asserted
Kyiv → offer → Moscow
“From now through the end of Saturday, as well as on Sunday and Monday, Ukraine is ready to refrain from strikes on Moscow,” Zelensky said on social media. asserted
Zelensky → refrain → media
The Ukrainian leader said the U.S. officials have “already begun working with the Russian side today.” asserted
officials → say → side
Earlier, he accused Russia of trying to disrupt their visit with overnight strikes on Kyiv’s two airports, as well as on a civilian target in the Dnipro region that killed five people. asserted
that → accuse → people
“Clearly, these Russian strikes on the airports are a reaction to the discussions and preparations for the possibility of the U.S. side using an aircraft to travel to Ukraine,” Zelensky said on X. It will be the first time that Witkoff and Kushner have visited Kyiv since Trump returned to office last year with a pledge to resolve the conflict. Travelling to Kyiv by plane would be a highly unusual move, with Ukrainian airspace closed since 2022 because of the war. asserted
airspace → use → war
Visiting leaders and officials have generally travelled by train. asserted
leaders → visit → train
The envoys are expected in Kyiv on Sunday, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP, while U.S. outlet Axios reported they would meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday. asserted
they → expect → Saturday
Trump told reporters the envoys would seek to gauge whether progress towards peace was possible. asserted
progress → tell → peace
Peace efforts have stalled, in part because of Washington’s war with Iran, while Moscow and Kyiv have intensified long-range attacks, driving up civilian casualties to levels not seen since the start of fighting in February 2022. asserted
Moscow → stall → February
“I sent Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, two great negotiators. asserted
I → send → Witkoff
They’ve done a great job, and we sent them over to see whether or not we can get something done. asserted
something → do → them
And there may be a good chance that we’ll do it,” Trump said. uncertain
Trump → say → it
The U.S. president would not say whether the plan the envoys were bringing involved Ukraine ceding territory as he has previously suggested, but added: “We have an idea for peace.” uncertain
We → say → peace
Witkoff and Kushner, who have been involved in negotiations for ceasefires in Gaza and Iran, have travelled repeatedly to Moscow in previous attempts at diplomacy. asserted
who → involve → diplomacy
The renewed push for diplomacy comes as Russia and Ukraine pummel each other with long-range missile and drone attacks. asserted
Russia → renew → attacks
Just hours before Trump’s announcement on Friday, a Russian drone struck the headquarters of Ukraine’s SBU security service in central Kyiv, according to Zelensky. uncertain
drone → strike → Zelensky
The strike, which Zelensky said was aimed at the office of the agency’s acting chief, was the first on its headquarters since the start of Russia’s offensive. asserted
Zelensky → say → offensive
Overnight, a Russian strike killed five people and wounded five others in the southeastern city of Kamianske, said Oleksandr Ganzha, head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration. asserted
Ganzha → kill → administration
Witkoff and Kushner’s visit comes after a rare trip to Moscow last month by CIA director John Ratcliffe, who warned Russia against any attack on NATO member states, according to U.S. media. uncertain
who → come → media
Earlier this week, the United States welcomed the Russian finance minister at a G20 gathering in North Carolina. asserted
States → welcome → Carolina
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