Witkoff in Russia for Putin meeting after ‘positive’ talks with Zelenskyy

Secretary of State Marco Rubio described Witkoff’s talks with Zelenskyy as ‘positive’, as efforts to end war intensify.

United States Special Envoy Steve Witkoff has arrived in St Petersburg for talks with Russian leaders on the Ukraine war following “positive” talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Norway.

Witkoff is due to meet President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday in the city in northwestern Russia, as the US pushes for an end to the war that began more than four and a half years ago with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

US President Donald Trump has expressed increasing frustration with Zelenskyy in recent weeks and has suggested that someone else should negotiate on Kyiv’s behalf. The remarks signalled a new low in their relationship, while Zelenskyy has accused the US of suspending crucial intelligence sharing.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the talks between Witkoff and Zelenskyy as “positive”, adding that the US envoy would share the results with Putin. Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner also attended the talks with Zelenskyy, but did so virtually because of illness. Kushner is also expected to attend the meeting with Putin remotely.

“He’ll now, armed with those ideas, be able to go to St Petersburg and share them with the Russian side – and let’s see if we can make some progress,” Rubio said.

The prime ministers of Norway and Finland also attended the talks in Oslo. Representatives from the European Union and NATO were present. Following Tuesday’s talks, Zelenskyy said “very, very important” intelligence from the US had been restored.

Zelenskyy has also accused Washington of slowing down the internet service, Starshield, which is crucial for Ukraine’s battlefield operations. Starshield is the military-grade equivalent of Starlink and is also developed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

Rubio dismissed Zelenskyy’s accusations, saying Trump had “nothing to do with the decisions that are made by Starlink and Starshield”. Musk disputes this and says such decisions can only be made by the US military and president.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that Musk ordered the slowdown of the service, citing US officials and people familiar ⁠with the matter.

As diplomatic efforts intensify, Russia and Ukraine continue to trade long-range attacks.

At least one person was killed and two were wounded in a Ukrainian drone attack in Russia’s western Bryansk ⁠region on Wednesday, Governor Yegor Kovalchuk said on Telegram.

The Ukrainian Emergency Service said two people were killed in a Russian attack on a high-rise building in the Sviatoshinsky district of the capital, Kyiv.