Diplomatie: US-Vermittler Witkoff und Kushner erstmals in Kiew

In a race to end the war in Ukraine, US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner made their first trip to Kyiv. Upon arriving at the city's station, they were greeted by Ukraine's presidential aide Kyrylo Budanow, as shown in a video from the news agency Unian. The day before, the duo, Jared Kushner being the son-in-law of former US President Donald Trump, had discussed a possible end to the Russian aggression war that has been ongoing for over four and a half years in Moscow.

They spoke for nearly three hours with Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. In Kyiv, a meeting with President Volodymyr Selenskyj was planned. Selenskyj wrote on social media, "We are ready for the conversation. Ukraine was and will always be constructive. We are interested in bringing the war to an end. Ukraine needs security guarantees and a dignified post-war order."

However, overall expectations in Kyiv, as in Moscow, are low for the new US mediation efforts. US negotiators have visited Moscow multiple times since 2025, but had never been to Kyiv until now, which may have caused Selenskyj some displeasure. In April, he criticized them for traveling to Moscow without visiting Kyiv, saying it was disrespectful.

The recent footage from Moscow on Saturday is not expected to go well in Kyiv. Putin stated that Witkoff and Kushner have now gained the trust of the Russian side. "For us, cooperation with them is comfortable," the president said. Witkoff said the meetings with Putin were among the most memorable for him. The "New York Times" had previously reported, citing anonymous officials familiar with the diplomatic efforts, that the negotiations on the trip took weeks.

The US insisted that Ukrainian stop their drone attacks on Moscow and temporarily suspend the strain on Russia's energy infrastructure while Witkoff and Kushner are in Russia. Russian forces were also ordered to halt their rocket attacks on Kyiv. Putin agreed to a three-day ceasefire for Ukraine's capital. Selenskyj also agreed to forgo attacks on Moscow until at least Monday.

The journey by train from Poland to Kyiv followed after the Moscow meeting. Since then, US President Donald Trump has once again expressed optimism that this could succeed. Previous US efforts to end the Ukraine war have not brought breakthroughs. US mediators have been at the table with Moscow and Kyiv in the United Arab Emirates and in Geneva.

However, negotiations have been put on hold also due to the US being distracted by their own war in Iran. The signs now point to escalation. On the front line, there is little movement, while both sides have intensified their air and sea warfare. Moscow is increasingly using ballistic missiles, which are particularly difficult to defend against, especially knowing that Kyiv lacks anti-missile weapons.

Ukraine has expanded its attacks primarily with drones on Russian territory, regularly targeting refineries and logistics centers of online retail giants. According to UN observers, as many civilians have died in the last month as in the past several months combined.