US envoys arrive in Moscow for planned Putin talks on Ukraine

US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow on Thursday for a planned meeting with President Vladimir Putin about the war in Ukraine.

Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev greeted them at the airport. The BBC reported that the meeting with Putin was scheduled to begin at noon Moscow time (09:00 GMT). The envoys planned to travel afterwards to Dublin to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The visit follows two days of US-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi between Russian and Ukrainian delegations. Both sides announced an agreement on a prisoner-of-war exchange, although Russia’s chief negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, described it as an agreement in principle. Zelensky said he expected a large exchange; the numbers and timing have not been settled publicly.

The Abu Dhabi talks ended without a major breakthrough on ending Russia’s invasion. US mediators said differences remained on major issues, including territory. Zelensky said Ukraine would not agree to cede Russian-occupied territory in exchange for peace.

Kushner said he and Witkoff would ask Putin to accept European representatives in future negotiations. Medinsky dismissed immediate European participation, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Europeans could eventually join but criticised their current position.