Putin, Witkoff meet in Russia for Ukraine war talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin began talks with US envoy Steve Witkoff in Saint Petersburg on Wednesday on ending the Ukraine war. Witkoff said he had brought "ideas" for a possible peace deal after meeting Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky in Norway, in talks Washington described as "positive."

What did Witkoff tell Putin in Saint Petersburg?

Witkoff told Putin he had brought papers outlining some sort of peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. He said he hoped trilateral talks could resume so technical teams could begin discussing next steps. Putin thanked Trump for his efforts to resolve the war and said he was eager to hear about the US meeting with Zelensky.

Witkoff, Trump's business partner and envoy, spoke to Putin in Saint Petersburg's Konstantinovsky Palace. "We've brought some papers. It's really some ideas, some sort of peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, and you'll read that at your leisure," he said.

Putin said Trump had "insisted that it was necessary to end this conflict" in their last phone call. Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner is also due to participate in Wednesday's talks remotely.

Why are the Putin and Witkoff talks happening now?

The meeting is taking place as the United States pushes to end Europe's worst conflict since World War II. Russia is pounding Ukrainian cities ahead of winter, and Donald Trump and Zelensky are in a bitter feud. As Witkoff arrived in Saint Petersburg, Kyiv said Moscow's strikes killed at least four people, including two in the capital and an elderly couple in the eastern Kharkiv region.

The Witkoff-Zelensky meeting in Norway followed days of friction between Washington and Kyiv. Zelensky had urged the US not to side with Russia, and Trump had called for the Ukrainian leader to be replaced. Zelensky on Tuesday thanked Washington for resuming US intelligence sharing on Russian strikes.

Witkoff described his talks with Zelensky as "productive." "I think there's some degree of momentum and I hope that today can be another step forward in the peace process and discussing how we resolve the Ukrainian conflict," he told Putin.

US-led talks have so far not led to a breakthrough, and Moscow insists it intends to press on with its offensive. Putin has repeatedly refused to hold face-to-face talks with Zelensky and has said Moscow intends to seize the rest of eastern Ukraine. Russia's war against Ukraine has killed hundreds of thousands of troops on both sides, as well as thousands of civilians.

What is the Russia-US diesel deal?

Russia announced as Witkoff touched down that it would soon begin shipments of diesel to the United States under a deal with Trump. The deal eased US sanctions on Moscow to allow Russian fuel to flow to the United States. It was met with astonishment in Kyiv and across Europe.

The deal has been seen as a way to lower fuel prices for American consumers ahead of testing midterm elections in the US next month. Witkoff told Putin Washington was "grateful" for the arrangement. He said Washington was interested in further "business and economic cooperation" with Russia when the war ends.

"We even talk about it now openly with the Ukrainians to give them some sort of sense about what the possibilities will be when this whole conflict is over," Witkoff said. Kyiv has pleaded with Western countries to put more pressure on Moscow and not lift sanctions.

Who is Stephen Hubbard and why did Russia free him?

Stephen Hubbard is a US citizen who Moscow had held since the start of the war on allegations of fighting as a "mercenary" for Ukraine. Putin announced ahead of the talks that Hubbard had been freed. Hubbard, a retired English teacher in his 70s, was taken captive by Russian forces in Ukraine in 2022 and later sentenced to almost seven years in prison. He had always denied the charges.

Trump had asked Putin to free Hubbard. Witkoff hailed the move and called Putin a "humanitarian." Trump later said Hubbard was on his way to the United States and that the release had not been part of a swap deal.