Witkoff, American Delegation Arrive in Moscow For Ceasefire Talks With Putin

A delegation of United States diplomats arrived in Moscow on Thursday morning for talks on agreeing a ceasefire in the Ukraine War, with a possible call between President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin to follow.

America’s Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff flew into Moscow’s Vnukovo airport on Thursday morning, having travelled from Doha, Qatar by way of European airspace on a Gulfstream executive jet. Witkoff and a team of negotiators are in the Russian capital to attempt to hammer out an agreement on the proposed Ukraine War 30-day ceasefire.

To this point Russia has been relatively circumspect on the ceasefire, saying only after it was agreed in principle by the U.S. and Ukraine that they would wait for further details from Washington to study before commenting further. The two nations had agreed to work towards peace at talks in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, a decision that saw the Trump administration resume military and intelligence support to the Kyiv government.

Who will be representing the Russian side in negotiations today has not been stated by the Kremlin but it has been briefed Witkoff and the American delegation may speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin. It is also suggested, but not confirmed, that a telephone call between President Trump and President Putin may take place later today.

Ahead of talks, Putin’s spokesman teased the President may make a public statement on Ukraine later in the day but emphasised his main business for Thursday was meeting with the President of Belarus, the post-soviet de facto dictator Alexander Lukashenko who has supported the Russian invasion of Ukraine since the start. Lukashenko also flew into Moscow on Thursday, landing at the same airport as Witkoff.

Meanwhile, Russia states it continues to retake its own territory in the Kursk Oblast from Ukraine’s counter invasion, a bid to grasp a bargaining chip which appears to be falling apart at the very moment it is most needed. Western intelligence community-adjacent media has stated Ukrainian troops have withdrawn in large numbers to escape being totally encircled and massacred, and Russian state media asserts most of what Ukraine once held has now been recaptured.

Russia’s President Putin visited the area himself on Wednesday, dressed not in his characteristic suit but rather in military fatigues, and ordered troops there to totally retake the region “as soon as possible”.

On Wednesday, the U.S. said on peace the ball is now in Russia’s court, and the White House urged Moscow to sign. Trump’s Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “This is the closest we have been to peace in this war”. President Trump has warned there would be consequences for Russia if they refuse to go along with his plan, having stated: “That would be very bad for Russia… I don’t want to do that because I want to get peace”.

Russia is likely to demand that large swathes of eastern Ukraine are recognised as fully Russian territory, including Crimea, Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia. Accepting such a demand is so radically outside the world view of players like Ukraine and the European Union, agreeing lasting peace will very likely be a herculean task, given the level of disconnect between both sides on fundamental questions including culpability for war crimes, ownership of territory, and the future settlement of international relations.