Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet US special envoy Steve Witkoff for talks, the Kremlin spokesperson said on Wednesday. This is part of the ongoing negotiations to end the Russia-Ukraine war.
“Yes, indeed, such contacts for tomorrow (Thursday) are on the president’s schedule,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the RBK news outlet on Wednesday.
Earlier, Witkoff said he planned to leave for Moscow after the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday night along with Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law.
“Jared and I will leave Thursday night and arrive in Moscow late at night and then go over to the UAE afterwards for working groups,” Witkoff told Bloomberg TV in an interview.
President Trump has tasked Witkoff and Kushner with negotiating the end of the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
AFP quoted Witkoff saying on Wednesday that Russia had requested the meeting, and that he believed the two sides were close to reaching the final “10 per cent” of a deal.
He said he would meet officials from the Ukrainian side later Wednesday.
According to AFP, Ukraine has said it has agreed to “90 per cent” of a deal but key issues, including the thorny question of territory, remain unresolved.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announced a plan to completely revamp Ukraine’s air defences in the face of Putin’s continuous assault.
The Independent quoted Ukraine’s foreign minister calling for urgent support for Ukraine, including air defence and sanctions pressure on Russia, saying Moscow’s latest “barbaric strike” was a wake-up call to world leaders gathering in Davos.
“We need urgent additional energy assistance, air defence and interceptors, as well as sanctions pressure on Moscow,” Andrii Sybiha said in a post on X.
