Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, is set to join forces with Steve Witkoff in a high-stakes meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday.
The White House has expressed “very optimistic” sentiments about the prospects of reaching a deal to end the devastating war in Ukraine, which has raged on for nearly four years, reports The Times.
Kushner and Witkoff, the White House special envoy, have emerged as the primary American negotiators in talks with Russia, effectively overshadowing Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Rubio, known for his more sympathetic stance towards Ukraine, played a role in redrafting the 28-point peace plan initially negotiated by Witkoff, Kushner, and Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, during clandestine talks in Miami in late October.
On Thusday it was reported that Witkoff was recorded in conversation appearing to coach the Kremlin apparatchik on how to tactically approach peace talks with the US President. The explosive discussion included suggestions about scheduling a Trump-Putin phone call before the planned visit of the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, to the White House. Ted Lieu – a Democrat – branded the Russian envoy “an actual traitor”, adding: “Steve Witkoff is supposed to work for the United States, not Russia.”
However, Rubio will not be accompanying the delegation to Moscow, leaving Witkoff and Kushner, whose extensive business interests have often run parallel to their diplomatic efforts, to present the Ukrainian counter-offer at this critical juncture in the conflict.
White House “very optimistic” after Florida talks with Ukrainians
On Monday, Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, expressed the administration’s optimism, stating, “I think the administration feels very optimistic,” following discussions between US officials and a Ukrainian delegation in Florida on Sunday.
Leavitt emphasized the president and his team’s dedication to resolving the conflict, adding, “They have been working so hard on this effort and they all really want to see this war come to an end. Just yesterday … they had very good talks with the Ukrainians in Florida and now of course Special Envoy Witkoff is on his way to Russia.”
Prior to his meeting with US officials, Russian media reported on Putin’s visit to a military command post, where top commanders informed him on Sunday that their forces had seized the city of Pokrovsk, a logistics hub of significant strategic importance. Despite similar claims made by Moscow in the past, which Ukraine has often refuted, a video released on Monday showed an visibly angry Putin, dressed in military fatigues, being told that Ukrainian soldiers were dying by the hundreds.
Putin decried the situation as “a tragedy for the Ukrainian people, connected to the criminal policies of the thieving junta.”
Ukraine cautions against “loud statements” ahead of Moscow talks
Andriy Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s centre for countering disinformation, warned that Putin’s “loud statements” were issued “exclusively for the western audience and to raise diplomatic stakes” in the lead-up to discussions in Moscow regarding a potential peace plan.
The original 28-point plan, negotiated by Witkoff and Kushner last month, faced criticism for being overly favorable to the Kremlin, requiring Ukraine to relinquish territory and restrict its armed forces to 600,000 troops, among other concessions.
Kushner’s growing diplomatic role and business ties
Despite no longer holding an official position in the White House, Kushner, 44, the husband of Ivanka Trump, appears to be taking on an increasingly active role in US diplomacy. His business connections in the Gulf, including a $2 billion investment by the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund into his private equity firm shortly after leaving government in 2021, helped pave the way for the Gaza deal.
Kushner also has a history of interactions with Russian officials, including a meeting in New York with Sergei Gorkov, head of the Russian state development bank, following the 2016 election.
As the world watches with bated breath, the outcome of the crucial talks in Moscow could determine the fate of the long-standing conflict in Ukraine and the future of the region.
