Trump envoys Witkoff and Kushner arrive in Ukraine: Details

Witkoff and Kushner in Ukraine

This is Witkoff and Kushner's first visit to Ukraine.

In Kyiv, they were met by representatives of the Ukrainian negotiating team—Kyrylo Budanov, Davyd Arakhamia, and Rustem Umerov.

Earlier, another representative of Trump, Keith Kellogg, who handled Ukraine-related issues, was visiting Kyiv. During Kellogg's visits, Russian strikes on Kyiv ceased, and Ukrainians joked that his presence literally served as air defense.

Trump envoys Witkoff and Kushner arrive in Ukraine: Details pic.twitter.com/FAFLbMflpz

— RBC-Ukraine (@NewsUkraineRBC) September 6, 2026

However, during Kellogg's August visit to Ukraine, this no longer worked, and Russian strikes did occur. Kellogg himself suggested that one of the reasons for this might be his current status, since he became a private citizen after leaving government service.

On the eve of the US envoys' visit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy convened a meeting with Ukrainian negotiators. According to him, the Ukrainian side is ready for the meeting and has prepared its own proposals for establishing peace.

Witkoff and Kushner in Moscow

Yesterday, September 5, Trump's envoys were in Moscow, where they held a three-hour meeting with Putin.

Yuri Ushakov, an aide to Putin, stated that the meeting was "substantive, constructive, extremely frank, and trusting." He also stated that Trump's representatives "promised to use the observations and assessments received from the Russian president regarding a path to a lasting peaceful resolution of the conflict during their contacts in Kyiv."

At the same time, Reuters, citing a White House official, reports that the talks were substantive and that further steps would be announced in the coming weeks. Witkoff and Kushner, however, did not comment on the visit.

According to media reports, the US delegation to the talks in Moscow included representatives from the National Security Council, the State Department, and the Treasury Department.

Following the talks, Witkoff and Kushner's plane departed Moscow at 12:29 a.m. and landed at Rzeszów-Jasionka Airport in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship of Poland at 2:31 a.m.

Context

This week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that US negotiators would visit Kyiv on Sunday, following a prior visit to Moscow.

On Friday, Zelenskyy also stated that Ukraine would not strike Moscow during the Americans' visit and was awaiting a corresponding decision from Russia regarding Ukraine. Ukraine also proposed a ceasefire on the front lines, but Russia did not respond to this initiative.

Subsequently, the Kremlin stated that Vladimir Putin had ordered that no strikes be launched against Kyiv for 3 days (from midnight on September 6 through September 9).

Commenting on Witkoff and Kushner's trip to Ukraine and Russia, the US President stated that they had been bringing with them a proposal to end the war.