Days before the White House’s deadline for Russia to reach a peace agreement with Ukraine or face economic sanctions, special envoy Steve Witkoff from the United States has arrived in Moscow.
If Moscow doesn’t agree to a ceasefire before Friday, President Donald Trump has warned that he will impose sanctions on Russia.
Trump has previously threatened to impose “secondary tariffs” against Russia’s trade partners, including China and India, but the White House has not yet provided specifics on how it will proceed.
Russian state news agency TASS reported that Witkoff was met by Russian President Kirill Dmitriev on Wednesday when he arrived in Moscow.
Dmitriev had been key players in recent months’ direct peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul as well as US and Russian discussions.
Witkoff’s visit was welcomed on Monday by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. We believe Witkoff’s conversations are significant, significant, and very useful, he said.
Witkoff and President Vladimir Putin will meet at the Kremlin, according to the Kremlin.
Trump responded to reporters’ questions on Monday regarding Witkoff’s response to Moscow and whether Russia could use it to evade sanctions: “Yeah, get a deal where people stop getting killed.”
Real estate billionaire Witkoff has arranged numerous lengthy encounters with Putin. Before joining Trump’s team in January, he had no prior diplomatic experience, and critics have called him too overboard for such responsibilities.
Three previous peace negotiations in Istanbul attempted to elicit a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine failed.
Putin, who has consistently rejected calls for a ceasefire, stated on Friday that he wants peace, but that his demands remain the same for the nearly three-and-a-half-year offensive. Ukraine has asked Russia to renounce Western support, including its request to join NATO, and demand that it cede more territory.
Source: Aljazeera
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