U.S. envoys ‘very encouraged’ after peace talks in Moscow and Kyiv

Key Points:

• President Donald Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, held “very meaningful” and “substantive” talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, aiming to end the war in Ukraine.
• Both Russia and Ukraine agreed to pause aerial attacks on each other’s capitals during the visits, providing a brief respite, though no broader ceasefire has been established.
• Details of any specific proposals to end the conflict were not disclosed, but U.S. officials indicated that substantive plans and next steps would be announced in the coming weeks.
• The meetings represent a renewed U.S. effort to revive peace talks after months of stalled momentum, occurring amid escalating Russian attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure and shortages of Ukrainian air defense systems.
• Putin praised the U.S. delegation and expressed trust in the process, while Zelenskyy emphasized Ukraine’s readiness to bring the war to an end, with hopes expressed by Pope Leo XIV for the talks to yield concrete diplomatic progress.