Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump's special envoy, is scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg on Wednesday to discuss proposals for ending Russia's conflict with Ukraine.
The meeting follows Witkoff's talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Oslo on Tuesday, which a US official described as "constructive" and "very productive." Finnish President Alexander Stubb participated in those talks and said "genuine progress" was made on peace proposals, though he offered no specifics and warned patience would be needed. Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, another key envoy, joined the Oslo meeting via video link.
A US official confirmed that Witkoff will present the proposals to Putin and that Kushner will participate virtually again. The official stated there was "strong alignment at the working level" among the US, Ukraine and Europe on next steps.
Putin has not publicly commented, but Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the Kremlin would hear Witkoff's proposals while ruling out "any political concessions."
Zelensky said Tuesday that US intelligence sharing on Russian missile attacks "works now," reversing earlier complaints that the US was withholding critical information. "Speaking about early warning, which is very important for our people, our children, adults, civilians because we can hear when ballistic[s] is coming so we are thankful to American side, now it works, it's great," Zelensky said. He also sought improved access to SpaceX's Starlink satellite network after Ukraine's military reported speed restrictions this week.
Zelensky restated that Ukraine remains "ready for negotiations" and that discussions covered security guarantees and energy ceasefire proposals. Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre stressed that Europe "needs to be at the table" in any talks to end the war.
Meanwhile, tensions between the Trump administration and Ukraine persist. Trump said it is time for Ukraine to "end this war" and for Kyiv to "make a deal." Unconfirmed reports indicate the US has not yet approved transfer of additional Patriot interceptor missiles, the only effective weapon against Russian ballistic missiles. Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged the missiles may not have arrived but stressed nothing was "intentionally" denied.
Moscow controls roughly 20 percent of Ukrainian territory. Russian drone attacks continued this week, killing at least 10 people Tuesday across multiple Ukrainian cities.