US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner held more than three hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday evening, Sept. 5, presenting proposals on potential pathways to end the war against Ukraine.
The meeting at the Kremlin lasted three hours and 10 minutes and included formal discussions followed by an informal working dinner, according to Putin aide Yuri Ushakov.
Putin was joined by Ushakov and Russian special representative for economic cooperation Kirill Dmitriev, who characterized the trip on social media as an “important peacemaking visit.”
A White House official told Reuters that the negotiations were “meaningful,” adding that the next steps in the diplomatic process would be announced in the coming weeks.
Ushakov stated that the US envoys arrived “seriously prepared” and presented concrete ideas for a settlement.
However, the Kremlin reiterated its standard demands regarding the conflict, emphasizing battlefield positions and the need to address what Moscow terms the “root causes” of the war. Ushakov added that the US delegation agreed to take Putin’s assessments into account during their scheduled meetings in Kyiv.
Beyond the war in Ukraine, the discussions covered broader bilateral economic relations, including potential large-scale, mutually beneficial US-Russian commercial projects.
Ushakov noted that Putin and US President Donald Trump intend to maintain direct personal contact and that working channels involving Witkoff and Kushner will remain active.
Diplomatic pause and preparations for Kyiv visit
At the start of the meeting, Putin addressed the security situation in the Ukrainian capital, stating that Russian forces had halted strikes on Kyiv starting at midnight on Sept. 5. Putin noted that the request for a temporary pause had been transmitted through official diplomatic and intelligence channels.
However, Putin explicitly rejected Ukraine’s call for a wider three-day ceasefire across the entire front line, asserting that Moscow had never agreed to such an arrangement.
“We will do everything that depends on us to ensure the safety of the negotiation process and the mediators,” Putin said, while noting that Ukrainian drone activity toward Russian territory had also decreased. Witkoff reportedly thanked Putin for agreeing to the pause on strikes affecting both capitals.
Witkoff and Kushner are scheduled to travel to Kyiv on Sunday, Sept. 6, to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Prior to the Moscow meeting, Zelensky confirmed that he had spoken directly with Trump’s envoys, pledging that Ukrainian forces would refrain from launching aerial strikes against Moscow through the end of Monday to safeguard the diplomatic process.
While Ukraine had advocated for a comprehensive bilateral ceasefire, the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed that frontline combat operations remain ongoing elsewhere after Moscow rejected the broader truce.