U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on Tuesday in a meeting that dragged on for nearly five hours.
Following the marathon meeting, Putin adviser Kirill Dmitriev posted to social media the single word “productive” with an emoji of a dove.
The Kremlin meeting, to which Putin showed up late, stretched well past midnight, with leaders around the world holding their breath for a positive outcome.
“There is no compromise plan for Ukraine yet; some American proposals are acceptable to Russia, while others are not,” said Yuri Ushakov, a Putin aide, according to state media outlet TASS.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s public remarks during the marathon negotiations betrayed a diminishing optimism, saying “there will be no simple solutions” because his country “understand[s] what is happening” and “who we are dealing with.”
“The issue is not the difficulty of making decisions. I am capable of making them,” Zelensky said on social media hours after the diplomats shut the door on their talks. “What matters is that everything is fair and transparent. That there are no games played behind Ukraine’s back. That nothing is decided without Ukraine – about us, about our future.”
Kaja Kalas, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, warned Monday that desperation to reach a deal could put an undue burden on Ukraine as the weaker party.
“I am afraid that all the pressure will be put on the victim,” she said in Brussels. “In order to have peace, we shouldn’t lose focus that it’s actually Russia who has started this war [and is] targeting civilians.”
Ahead of the meeting at the Kremlin, Putin was asked by a reporter about the possibility of a wider conflict between Russia and European nations. The Russian leader claimed that he did not desire war with the Old Continent but was “ready” if challenged.
“We’re not going to war with Europe. I’ve said this a hundred times already. But if Europe suddenly wants to fight us and starts the war, we’re ready right now,” Putin said. “There can be no doubt about that.”
He added, “If Europe suddenly wants to start a war with us and does start one, then a situation could very quickly arise where we will have no one to negotiate with.”
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Witkoff and Kushner were transported to the U.S. Embassy in Moscow following the talks.
Zelensky is reportedly expected to meet with Witkoff and Kushner in Brussels immediately after the U.S. officials’ exit from Russia.