US presidential special envoy Steve Witkoff said he will meet with representatives of Ukraine in New York this week, while noting that Washington continues to talk to Russia amid the United States’ efforts to stop Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“I’m meeting with the Ukrainians this week … and that’s an important signal,” he said on Fox News on 26 August. – We talk to the Russians every day.”
The meeting was announced by President Volodymyr Zelensky on 25 August. According to him, it should take place at the end of this week. The exact date is still unknown.
Earlier, at a meeting of Donald Trump’s cabinet in Washington, Witkoff, who participated in negotiations with Russia and met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on several occasions, said that the United States hopes for the end of the war in Ukraine by the end of 2025.
US President Donald Trump added that he hopes for a “very quick” end to the war in Ukraine. He did not name the exact dates.
At the same time, Trump noted that he is ready to impose economic sanctions on Russia if Russian President Putin does not show a desire for peace. “I am talking about economic sanctions because we are not going to get into a world war,” Trump emphasised. The US president labelled the sanctions as “economic warfare”.
The American president added that he would seek a face-to-face meeting between the leaders of Russia and Ukraine as he “wants it to be over.” To a reporter’s retort that Putin does not want to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky because he considers the Ukrainian president illegitimate, Trump replied, “it doesn’t matter what they say. It’s all nonsense. They’re all just playing to the public.” Trump noted that Zelensky “is not innocent either” of the fact that there is no movement toward peace in sight, and pointed out that sanctions and duties could apply not only to Russia but also to Ukraine.
Since taking office as president, Trump has stated the need for a swift end to the war Russia is waging against Ukraine. His administration has emphasised Not supporting Ukraine, but ending the fighting and reaching a peace agreement.
In recent weeks, U.S. officials have claimed progress toward peace, with Trump meeting with both Putin and Zelensky.
However, Russia is still effectively refusing to hold a face-to-face meeting between the two leaders, as well as making various demands. Meanwhile, the White House claims that both sides have already indicated a willingness to make concessions from their original demands.
Ukraine continues to insist on security guarantees. The Financial Times quoted its sources as saying on 26 August that during the talks on such guarantees, the USA expressed readiness to provide air and reconnaissance support for a possible mission of European countries that might send troops to Ukraine after the fighting is over.
The newspaper’s interlocutors note that receiving promises of support from the USA is a great success for Ukraine and its European allies. Russia has repeatedly opposed the deployment of foreign troops in Ukraine, which casts doubt on the very proposed guarantee scheme.