Kiev, Sept 7. (dpa/GNA) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, began talks with US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Kiev on Sunday, he confirmed in a post on X.
Zelensky welcomed them outdoors in front of St Sophia’s Cathedral, a symbol of the country’s long historical tradition. “We have begun talks,” Zelensky wrote on the X platform.
Following an initial round of talks, the security advisers from Germany, France and the UK, who had also travelled to the city, joined the discussions, according to Ukrainian media reports. No information was initially released regarding the progress of the talks.
Witkoff and Kushner arrived as the warring sides traded overnight attacks, while avoiding each other’s capitals, as Russian President Vladimir Putin called a three-day ceasefire to ensure the envoys’ safety. Zelensky stated: “We are keen to bring an end to the war closer.” Ukraine needs security guarantees and a dignified post-war order, he said.
Kushner stressed that US President Donald Trump, is seeking a lasting peace for Ukraine. Any future agreements should rule out the possibility of further war and give Ukraine the opportunity to harness the resourcefulness it has demonstrated during the years of war for the country’s future development, Kushner said, according to the Ukrainian news agency UNIAN, on the sidelines of the talks in Kiev.
Overall, expectations in both Kiev and Moscow regarding the new US mediation efforts were low.
On Saturday, they held talks with Putin in Moscow that lasted for almost three hours. The US negotiators brought new proposals with them to Moscow, according to reports.
Witkoff and Kushner have visited Moscow several times since 2025, but had not yet been to Kiev as part of their mediation efforts, causing resentment in Zelensky’s circle. He said in April that it was disrespectful to travel to Moscow without visiting Kiev.
The latest images from the envoys’ Moscow on Saturday is unlikely to have been well received in Kiev. Putin said Witkoff and Kushner had gained the trust of the Russian side. “For us, working with them is comfortable.”
Meanwhile, Witkoff said the meetings with Putin were among the most memorable he had ever had. After the meeting in Moscow, the US negotiators flew back to EU territory and landed in Rzeszów in eastern Poland.
From there, they travelled by train to Kiev, as other politicians from abroad have done in the past. US President Donald Trump sent Witkoff and Kushner to try and bring an end to Russia’s war. However, US efforts to date to bring an end to the war in Ukraine have not yet yielded a breakthrough.
Moscow and Kiev have been sceptical about attempts to bring the war, now in its fifth year, to an end. The conditions for an end to the war have not yet been met, Kremlin spokesman Peskov said on Friday.
Kyrylo Budanov, Zelensky’s chief of staff, also said he did not expect the fighting to end before the spring of 2027.
He predicted further Russian strategic air strikes on Ukraine during the winter, in comments to US media. There is little movement on the front line, while both sides have intensified their air and naval campaigns and are pursuing escalation.
Moscow is increasingly relying on attacks using ballistic missiles, which are particularly difficult to defend against, knowing Kiev lacks anti-missile defences.
As drones play a growing role in the conflict, Moscow has carried out attacks that last for days, doubling down on Kiev.
Ukraine has focused its drone attacks on Russia’s oil industry and online retailers deep inside Russian territory, in a bid to weaken the economy and bring the war home to the public.
Putin seeks the complete conquest of the industrial Donbass region of eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian forces are not planning to vacate this remaining part of the Donetsk region, however.
United Nations observers said July saw the highest number of civilian deaths in a single month in years.
GNA