WASHINGTON (TNND) — President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, is expected to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday, with hopes of moving forward on the U.S.-led peace plan to end the nearly four-year war in Ukraine.
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, will join the meeting, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. He said the talks would take “as long as needed” and would involve only Witkoff, Kushner and an interpreter from the U.S. side.
The high-stakes meeting follows a series of talks between the Ukrainian delegation and top U.S. officials to revise the original 28-point peace plan to a pared-down 19 points. It originally sparked alarm that it was too favorable to Moscow.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the revised plan could be “workable.” Putin called it a possible “basis” for a future peace agreement. Trump said Sunday, “There’s a good chance we can make a deal.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Monday that the administration feels “very optimistic” following the Florida meeting over the weekend.
“They had very good talks with the Ukrainians in Florida. And now, of course, Special Envoy Witkoff is on his way to Russia,” Leavitt said.
Zelenskyy said after the meeting that Rustem Umerov, head of Ukraine’s security council, expressed his country’s appreciation for U.S. efforts.
“I gave instructions to continue the most constructive work possible with President Trump’s team, as well as with our European partners,” Zelenskyy wrote on X Tuesday morning. “Ukrainian intelligence will provide partners with all available information regarding Russia’s true intentions and its attempts to use diplomatic engagement as cover to weaken sanctions and block important collective European decisions.”
Still, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on Sunday that the session with the Ukrainian team in Florida was productive, but added that “there’s more work to be done.”
European leaders, who fear Russia’s future territorial ambitions and are trying to figure out how they can fund Ukraine’s fight beyond this year, are trying to make their voices heard after being largely sidelined by Washington. They are also working on future security guarantees for Ukraine.
Zelenskyy was in Paris on Monday, and French President Emmanuel Macron said they spoke by phone with Witkoff. They also spoke to leaders of eight other European countries, as well as top European Union officials and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
Macron said the coming days will see “crucial discussions” between U.S. officials and Western partners.
Diplomats face a hard time trying to bridge Russian and Ukrainian differences and persuading them to strike compromises. The key obstacles — over whether Kyiv should cede land to Moscow and how to ensure Ukraine’s future security — appear unresolved.
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Editor’s note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.