Who is Steven Witkoff, Trump’s other envoy on war in Ukraine who traveled to Moscow
Photo: US President's special envoy Steve Witkoff (Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump assigned Steven Witkoff to handle issues related to the war in Ukraine. As a special envoy of the White House, Witkoff visited Moscow and joined the team of negotiators working on ending the war.
RBC-Ukraine has gathered everything known about Steven Witkoff.
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Who is Steven Witkoff?
Steven Charles Witkoff is an American billionaire, investor, and real estate developer. He is 67 years old, was born in New York, and holds a higher education degree in law.
Witkoff began his career as a real estate attorney. After completing his studies, he worked at the New York law firm Dreyer & Traub, where one of his clients was Donald Trump. They became friends while working on a business deal.
After two years as a lawyer, Witkoff co-founded the residential and commercial real estate company Stellar Management with a colleague.
In the late 1990s, he established his own company, Witkoff Group, which owned over 50 real estate properties in the US and abroad as of 2019.
Trump’s envoy
Steven Witkoff was part of Donald Trump’s team during his first presidential term.
In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, he led the Great American Economic Revival Industry Group, an organization created to combat the economic consequences of the pandemic.
He supported Trump during his 2024 presidential campaign and served as co-chair of the inauguration committee.
After being elected as the head of the White House, Donald Trump announced that he would appoint Steve Witkoff as a special envoy for Middle Eastern affairs.
Earlier this year, Witkoff participated in negotiations on a ceasefire and hostage exchange between Israel and Hamas alongside Biden administration official Brett McGurk and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
According to The New York Times, Witkoff’s direct, outspoken, and aggressive negotiation style contributed to securing a ceasefire agreement, under which 33 hostages held by Hamas were to be exchanged for approximately 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.
At the end of January, Witkoff arrived in Israel and traveled to Gaza to personally oversee the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
What did Witkoff do in Moscow?
On February 11, Steve Witkoff made a special visit to Moscow and personally transported American citizen Marc Fogel on his private jet. Fogel had spent three years in a Russian prison on drug possession charges.
According to Fox News, Witkoff held a three-hour meeting in Moscow with Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin on Tuesday.
It was later revealed that US President Donald Trump had secretly expanded Witkoff’s mandate beyond Middle Eastern affairs “to establish a negotiation channel with the Russians.”
Sources cited by The New York Times claim that Trump trusts Witkoff and believes his negotiation skills could help bring an end to the war in Ukraine.
Witkoff has also reportedly engaged in direct talks with unnamed “close allies” of Vladimir Putin and discussed Ukraine with contacts in Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
The day after Witkoff’s visit to Russia, on February 12, Trump held a phone conversation with Putin.
Following the call, the US president announced that he had agreed with Putin to work “very closely” together and for “the relevant teams to immediately begin negotiations.”
Trump also stated that Steven Witkoff would join the US negotiating team focused on ending the war in Ukraine.
Trump had previously appointed retired General Keith Kellogg as his envoy for Ukraine and Russia.
However, as NYT points out, the exact division of responsibilities between Witkoff and Kellogg remains unclear.
Additionally, when announcing the negotiating team, Trump did not mention Keith Kellogg.
Sources: materials from The New York Times, Fox News, statements by Donald Trump on Truth Social, and information from Wikipedia.
