Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet US special envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow on Tuesday, after the White House said it was “very optimistic” about reaching a deal to end the Ukraine war.
US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, who has acted as an outside adviser in diplomatic talks, is also expected to attend.
The summit comes after two days of negotiations in Florida between Ukrainian and US officials, including Witkoff and Kushner, aimed at refining a US-backed peace plan which had been viewed as favourable to Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the talks as “constructive”, but said there are “some tough issues that still have to be worked through”.
Speaking after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Monday, Zelensky said Kyiv’s priorities in peace talks were maintaining Ukraine’s sovereignty and securing strong security guarantees.
Zelensky said the “territorial issue is the most difficult” element of the peace deal, with the Kremlin continuing to push for Ukraine to cede territory in the east which it still controls – something Kyiv has long-maintained it will never do.
Witkoff also held talks with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Zelensky and Ukraine’s new chief negotiator Rustem Umerov, while several key European leaders virtually joined the Zelensky-Macron meeting.
Speaking on Monday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the draft peace deal had “been very much refined”, adding: “I think the administration feels very optimistic.”
She continued: “But as for the details, I will let the negotiators negotiate. But we do feel quite good, and we’re hopeful that this war can finally come to an end.”
Last week, Putin said he had seen a draft peace plan proposed by the US, and that it could become the “basis” for a future agreement to end the war.
However, Kremlin officials later cast doubt over whether it would accept the proposal after Kyiv and European allies said they had secured changes to it.
