President Donald Trump’s envoys are heading to Miami to engage in high-level discussions with Ukrainian and European officials, aiming to formulate a unified proposal to resolve the ongoing war with Russia. According to two US sources, the talks will focus on exploring "new ideas" that were initiated during recent visits to Moscow and Kiev by Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law, and Steve Witkoff, a business friend of Trump who serves as a roving envoy.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that the meetings are set to begin on Friday, following a particularly violent day in the conflict that saw a Russian strike on buses in the frontline city of Kramatorsk. The attack, which resulted in 30 deaths, stands as one of the most lethal incidents in recent weeks. Zelenskyy stated, "The Ukrainian negotiating team is due to meet Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff in the US tomorrow. The meeting is expected to last two days. We are also counting on a European team to join our negotiating group."
The Ukrainian delegation is slated to include the president's chief of staff, as well as top officials Rustem Umerov, Sergiy Kyslytsya, and David Arakhamia. US negotiators have also extended invitations to national security advisors from the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, as well as officials from NATO and the European Union.
While US-led peace efforts have largely stagnated as Washington focuses on its war with Iran, officials indicate this new effort utilizes an enlarged format. The discussions are expected to cover security guarantees for Ukraine, a post-war prosperity plan, and various other aspects of the conflict. A US source familiar with the proceedings noted that European partners have expressed frustration regarding rising energy costs, which the source said Trump has attributed to Ukrainian strikes on Russian diesel refineries rather than the ongoing conflict with Iran. "They are all nervous about the winter. It will be a tough winter if the war does not stop," the source added.
Previous attempts to negotiate peace have failed to produce significant progress, primarily due to Moscow's refusal to abandon its maximalist conditions for ending hostilities. While Trump recently mentioned a scheduled call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, reports suggest that conversation was intended to focus on the death of a researcher at a Russian plague lab. As the Miami meetings approach, Witkoff was observed traveling with the president on Air Force One during a campaign trip to Texas.
