Trump time means to do job today - Kellogg on Special Envoy Witkoff's role
Steve Witkoff, US Special Envoy to the Middle East (photo: Getty Images)
US Special Envoy for Ukraine negotiations Keith Kellogg will be responsible for contacts with Ukraine and Europe. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff will be in charge of contacts with Russia, Kellogg explained at the Ukrainian Lunch on the occasion of the Munich Security Conference.
He explained that the US has two areas of work simultaneously - contacts with Ukraine and Russia. Separate negotiators will be working on the two areas.
"We've got an envoy for the Middle East Witkoff involved. He's got the Russian lane. And I work in the American/Ukrainian allied lane as well. We're doing that for speed because all we want to do is say "When is this going to end?" I'm on Trump time. And the Trump time means to do a job today and he wants to know tomorrow why is it not solved," Kellogg said.
This week, the US President's Special Envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, visited Moscow. He picked up teacher Mark Vogel, who was imprisoned in Russia and sentenced to 14 years in prison for alleged drug smuggling.
The United States, in turn, returned cybercriminal Alexander Vinnik to Russia.
US President Donald Trump said that Vogel's release could be "the beginning of a relationship" that would end the war in Ukraine.
Russian negotiators
Recently, Bloomberg and CNN reported that Russia has chosen a group to negotiate with the United States over Ukraine. It includes three so-called "heavyweights."
According to media reports, the Russian negotiating team includes Yuri Ushakov, chief foreign policy adviser in the Kremlin, Sergei Naryshkin, director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, and financier Kirill Dmitriev. According to journalists, the latter may play a key role as an unofficial "back channel" with Trump's negotiators.
