US Envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner Arrive in Moscow for Talks With Putin on Ukraine War

US President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow on Thursday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as Washington steps up diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine.

Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev received the two American representatives at Vnukovo Airport, according to Russian news agency Interfax. State-run TASS reported that a convoy carrying Dmitriev, Witkoff and Kushner left the airport after their arrival.

The visit comes after two days of negotiations involving Russian, Ukrainian and American delegations in Abu Dhabi. The discussions ended without a major breakthrough, prompting the US envoys to travel to Moscow to take forward the proposals discussed in the United Arab Emirates.

WHAT WITKOFF AND KUSHNER WILL DISCUSS

Announcing the Moscow visit on Wednesday, Kushner said he and Witkoff would meet Putin to review the Abu Dhabi discussions and explore areas where progress could be made.

"Steve and I are going to travel to Moscow tomorrow to meet with President Putin to go over what was discussed today and to try to make more progress on some of the issues that we discussed because we see some openings and some opportunities there," Kushner said at a news conference in Abu Dhabi.

Kushner said the discussions would focus on humanitarian assistance and prisoner exchanges. He also indicated that Washington wanted European countries to be part of the negotiations, a proposal Moscow has repeatedly resisted.

Although Kushner does not hold an official position in the Trump administration, he has taken on a prominent role in the diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.

ABU DHABI TALKS MAKE LIMITED PROGRESS

The Moscow visit follows the first direct engagement of this kind between Russian, Ukrainian and American delegations since February, according to CNN. The talks in Abu Dhabi lasted less than two hours on Wednesday.

Senior Russian negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said the discussions had produced some areas of understanding, but acknowledged that differences remained.

"In some areas, we reached a mutual understanding. In others, we did not. This conversation will, without a doubt, continue," Medinsky said.

Ukraine's negotiating team also reported progress on certain issues, including security arrangements. Senior Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov said some advances had been made but cautioned that significant differences between the sides remained.

EUROPE SEEKS A ROLE IN PEACE PROCESS

The diplomatic push has also raised questions over Europe's role in any eventual settlement. European officials were in Abu Dhabi this week for separate discussions with Ukrainian and American representatives.

US President Donald Trump has in recent weeks signalled concessions to Moscow, raising concerns among European governments that Washington could pursue an agreement on terms favourable to the Kremlin.

Last week, Trump indicated that a new security arrangement for Ukraine could involve European countries. European leaders have since reiterated their demand for a greater role in negotiations that could determine the country's future security.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at a G7 meeting earlier this week that Washington wanted to expand future negotiations to include European representatives at the main negotiating table.

Kushner has also indicated that he and Witkoff would travel to Dublin to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and discuss proposals emerging from the Abu Dhabi negotiations.

The outcome of the Moscow meeting is expected to indicate whether the latest round of diplomatic engagement can narrow the differences between Russia and Ukraine.

With inputs from ANI