US envoys hope for new Ukraine-Russia talks soon after visits to both capitals
AI generated
KYIV – US peace envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff heralded new momentum in peace talks after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Sept 6 as the Trump administration renewed its push to end Russia’s four-and-a-half-year war in Ukraine.
Kushner and Witkoff travelled from Moscow, where they held three hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sept 5 but did not appear to secure a breakthrough in the conflict.
Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s envoy, said they had “heard new ideas” in Moscow, which they did not detail, and they hoped a new round of US-mediated Ukraine-Russia talks would be announced “in short order.”
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round → hope → order
Zelensky praised the “very substantive” conversation with Witkoff and Kushner and said Ukraine was ready for trilateral talks.
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Ukraine → praise → talks
He said he also discussed air defence supplies and energy support for Ukraine ahead of winter, with Russia expected to bomb Ukraine’s power grid again.
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Russia → say → grid
Previous rounds of US-mediated peace talks encouraged by Trump, who campaigned on a promise to quickly end the war, have yielded few results.
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who → mediate → results
He suggested on Sept 4 that the US had a fresh proposal, though he did not elaborate.
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he → suggest → proposal
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov described the meeting on Sept 5 as “highly useful”, while a White House official told Reuters that next steps would be announced in the coming weeks.
“We made a lot of progress in Moscow,” Witkoff told reporters in Kyiv on Sept 6, adding that he was “very encouraged” by his conversations with the Ukrainian team.
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he → describe → team
The Ukrainian president, who believes Washington will be key to any peace deal, has said a window of opportunity to make peace exists before the US begins focusing on its next presidential election in 2028.
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US → believe → 2028
The US envoys held several hours of talks with Ukrainian officials.
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envoys → hold → officials
British, French and German national security advisers, who were also in Kyiv, joined for the final hour.
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who → join → hour
The US-Ukrainian discussions were due to continue on Sept 6 evening.
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discussions → continue → evening
During a break, Zelensky said officials discussed the possibility of security and economic guarantees for Kyiv, as well as a post-war “prosperity plan.”
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officials → say → Kyiv
“In the last 10 to 12 months, I believe we have got stronger,” Zelensky said, adding that the US and Europe had noted this.
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US → believe → this
Cautious optimism on the streets of Kyiv
Witkoff and Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, have visited Moscow several times in their roles as peace envoys.
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Witkoff → visit → envoys
Their visit has long been sought by Ukraine’s leadership, and on the streets of Kyiv, which has been bombarded heavily in recent weeks, some residents were hopeful.
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residents → seek → weeks
“The issue can be solved in the blink of an eye.
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issue → solve → eye
We want peace.
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We → want → peace
I’ve fought myself, so I know what war is like.
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war → fight → what
We need peace, because there’s no other way,” said military veteran Stepan Yermak.
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Yermak → need → peace
In previous talks, the sides have remained far apart on a range of key issues, including the future of the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas.
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sides → remain → Donbas
Russia has demanded Ukraine’s withdrawal from an entrenched belt of towns that it still controls there, but Kyiv has refused, reasoning that it can still hold on.
“The question of Donbas... I believe, is the question of this war,” Zelensky told reporters on Sept 6.
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Zelensky → demand → Sept
For Ukraine, hard security guarantees from its European allies and the US are crucial to deterring Russia from invading again.
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guarantees → deter → Russia
Although he said the issue had been discussed, Zelensky did not detail if progress was made.
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progress → say → ?
Though the front lines of the ground war remain largely static, both Russian and Ukrainian forces have intensified long-range air strikes in recent weeks.
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forces → remain → weeks
Russia has pounded the Ukrainian capital day and night with missiles and drones for the past two weeks, including an attack on Sept 4 on the headquarters of the SBU security service.
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Russia → pound → service
The Kremlin has said it would pause strikes on Kyiv until Sept 7, while Zelensky has said Ukraine would also halt strikes on Moscow.
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Ukraine → say → Moscow
There was no let-up in fighting along the 1,200km front, however, and Russia bombarded other Ukrainian cities on Sept 5.
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Russia → be → Sept
Ukraine has inflicted damaging hits throughout the summer on Russian refineries, oil terminals and the warehouses of online retailer Wildberries, in an attempt to raise the cost to Moscow of continuing the war.
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Ukraine → inflict → war
Ukraine said on Sept 6 it had struck the Ryazan oil refinery, around 480km inside Russia, overnight, causing a fire.
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it → say → fire
The Aporia
