Trump Sends Witkoff, Kushner to Russia and Ukraine With Fresh Peace Proposal

US President Donald Trump has renewed his push to end the war in Ukraine, announcing Friday that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will travel to Moscow and Kyiv carrying a proposal aimed at bringing the more than four-year conflict to an end.

The latest diplomatic initiative comes as fighting between Russia and Ukraine continues to escalate, with both sides intensifying missile and drone strikes and civilian casualties rising to levels not seen since the beginning of the war.

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022, triggering Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II.

A senior Ukrainian official told AFP that Witkoff and Kushner are expected in Kyiv on Sunday.

Axios reported that the pair would first meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday before travelling to Kyiv for talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky the following day. The Kremlin declined to comment on the report.

Trump said the envoys would determine whether there was a realistic opportunity to move peace negotiations forward.

“I sent Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, two great negotiators. They’ve done a great job, and we sent them over to see whether or not we can get something done. And there may be a good chance that we’ll do it,” Trump said.

“They’re bringing with them a proposal to end the war,” he added.

The president did not reveal whether the proposal would involve Ukraine giving up territory, a possibility he has raised previously. Trump, however, said: “We have an idea for peace.”

The mission represents the first visit to Kyiv by Witkoff and Kushner since Trump returned to the White House last year and pledged to find a solution to the war.

Witkoff and Kushner have been involved in previous diplomatic negotiations over ceasefires in Gaza and Iran. They have also travelled to Moscow several times in earlier efforts to facilitate dialogue.

Ukraine Proposes Ceasefire During Talks

Trump’s announcement came amid renewed attacks between the two countries.

Just hours earlier, Zelensky said a Russian drone had hit the headquarters of Ukraine’s SBU security service in central Kyiv, targeting the office of its acting chief. The attack marked the first strike on the agency’s headquarters since the beginning of Russia’s invasion.

Zelensky nevertheless proposed that Ukraine halt airstrikes while the American envoys conduct their diplomatic mission, calling on Moscow to do the same.

“There will be no airstrikes on our part, and Russia must reciprocally ensure a ceasefire — without its own airstrikes — for the duration needed to conduct these talks,” Zelensky said in his evening address.

Russia had not immediately commented on the proposal.

The violence continued later in the day, with Oleksandr Ganzha, head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, reporting that a Russian strike killed four people and wounded five others in Kamianske, southeastern Ukraine.

Zelensky had warned on Wednesday that Russian airspace would be “completely unsafe” and filled with Ukrainian drones as long as Moscow maintained its military campaign.

The latest US diplomatic effort follows a rare Moscow visit by CIA Director John Ratcliffe more than a week ago. US media reported that Ratcliffe warned Russia against attacking NATO member states.

Washington also hosted Russia’s finance minister at a G20 gathering in North Carolina earlier this week, providing another sign that diplomatic channels between the United States and Moscow remain open despite the continuing war.

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