Russian President Vladimir Putin met US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner at the Kremlin on Saturday for talks to try to revive a stalled push to end the Russia-Ukraine war, according to Business Standard. At the start of the meeting, Putin asked Kushner and Witkoff to pass on his warm wishes and gratitude to Trump, and described the situation in Ukraine as 'not simple.' The envoys' visit came as both sides agreed to pause strikes on each other's capitals while the talks took place. Putin ordered that no strikes be carried out against Kyiv for three days, starting at midnight today, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine was prepared to halt strikes on Moscow until Monday. This represents the first known visit by Witkoff and Kushner since their last visit to Moscow in January, when they met Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin. The visit comes as Washington's push to end the fighting, now in its fifth year, has lost momentum as US attention has been focused for the last six months on its war with Iran.
The air war between Russia and Ukraine has intensified significantly, with Russian forces firing Iskander-M and KN-23 ballistic missiles along with 167 attack drones overnight, according to Business Standard. Ukraine's air force reported that the drones included Shahed-type aircraft -- around half of them jet-powered -- as well as Geran and decoy drones. Russian attack targets included steel mills in the Dnipropetrovsk region and fuel depots near the Hostomel airfield, outside Kyiv. On Friday, a Russian drone hit one of the most important government buildings in Kyiv -- the headquarters of Ukraine's Security Service, known as the SBU. Russian attacks killed five people and wounded five more at an industrial facility in Ukraine's southern Dnipropetrovsk region, with local military administration head describing those killed as employees at the site. Russian forces also repeatedly struck a shopping centre in the southern Mykolaiv region with drones overnight, damaging retail premises and sparking fires, with a 72-year-old man and a 17-year-old girl hurt. Zelenskyy described the Russian strikes on airports overnight in Kyiv and nearby Boryspil as 'demonstrative,' linking them to the planned US visit.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy linked the Russian strikes to the planned US visit, stating in a social media post on Saturday that "Clearly, these Russian strikes on the airports are a reaction to the discussions and preparations for the possibility of the US side using an aircraft to travel to Ukraine and land at Kyiv Airport or Boryspil Airport." As reported by Business Standard, Zelenskyy said "We have taken note of this Russian move, and next week we will adjust our operation accordingly regarding Russian airspace, which has become dangerous because of our drones and missiles in the sky." This represents a significant shift from the stalled US-led peace talks that have remained frozen since February, coinciding with President Donald Trump's focus on the war with Iran. The diplomatic engagement comes despite Ukraine's threat to disrupt air traffic to Russia, which Putin said "certainly complicates the possibilities for conducting bilateral peace negotiations." Kushner and Witkoff plan to travel to Ukraine on Sunday in what would be their first visit there since the war began, with Kyiv's goal to make the visit "as constructive and substantive as possible."
Expectations for the US envoy visit are extremely low, according to people close to the Kremlin, as reported by NDTV. Previous trips by Witkoff and Kushner failed to achieve progress and there's no reason to believe they're bringing acceptable proposals now, the people said. Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to stop the war only on his own terms, and Moscow's demands are getting tougher because it believes it has the military advantage over Ukraine, said the people familiar with Kremlin thinking. The US envoys are expected to push previous ideas like making Donbas an economic free zone, which Russia has already rejected. Still, people familiar with the thinking in Kyiv said Ukraine is also pessimistic about making meaningful progress around the Witkoff-Kushner visit. Meanwhile, the Russian Defence Ministry reported 53 Ukrainian drones detected in Russian airspace on Saturday, a figure significantly lower than the average reported in recent months. Putin indicated that Russia had not agreed to a broader three-day ceasefire, despite the temporary halt on Kyiv strikes.
Putin indicated that Russia's contacts with the Trump administration were continuing, expressing optimism about future cooperation. As reported by Reuters, he said "President Trump, as far as I understand, feels and sees the need for such positive, constructive work." Additionally, Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar said "If India can be of any help, in any manner, we are there," while Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Putin on Monday that the war in Ukraine needed to end for humanity's sake and that New Delhi would support every effort to stop the fighting. Putin reiterated that there are no plans to order another mobilization following parliamentary elections in Russia later this month, stating "There is no scenario today that would require mobilization." Despite the diplomatic efforts, major differences remain between the two sides, with a source close to the Kremlin telling Reuters that Putin remains focused on capturing more territory and believes Russia can secure the remaining part of Ukraine's Donetsk region by the end of the year.
