Trump Envoys Witkoff, Kushner to Make First Kyiv Visit Following Zelensky-Trump Meeting

Senior US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have agreed to travel to Kyiv for the first time, marking a significant shift in Washington’s diplomatic approach after months in which the two repeatedly engaged Moscow without visiting the country fighting Russia’s invasion. The planned mission follows President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Tuesday meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House. JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Witkoff and Kushner have played central roles in Trump’s efforts to negotiate an end to Russia’s war, but their diplomacy has so far included repeated direct contacts with Russian President Vladimir Putin while Ukraine’s position was largely presented in meetings outside the country. A visit to Kyiv begins to correct that imbalance. It will allow Trump’s senior envoys to hear directly from Ukrainian leaders, assess the country’s security needs on Ukrainian soil and confront the reality of a war Russia continues to wage through missile attacks, drone strikes and occupation. From Moscow to Kyiv Witkoff and Kushner have maintained extensive contacts with Russian officials since Trump returned to office. After speaking with Witkoff and Kushner earlier this month, Zelensky stressed that the central problem is not Ukraine’s willingness to negotiate, but Russia’s refusal to abandon its war aims. “Peace is needed – peace with dignity, and Ukraine has long been ready for it,” Zelensky said. Other Topics of Interest Zelensky, Trump Hold ‘Positive’ White House Talks as US-Ukraine Ties Warm Over Patriots, Russia Pressure Kyiv seeks Patriot production licenses and renewed diplomacy as Washington steps up pressure on Moscow and advances new sanctions. “The key objective is to ensure that Russia is genuinely prepared to bring this war to an end.” Ukraine has already endured more than four years of Russia’s full-scale invasion, mass missile attacks, occupation and destruction. Kyiv’s position is that any peace process must guarantee that Russia cannot simply pause the war, rebuild its forces and attack again. The agreement for Witkoff and Kushner to travel to Kyiv followed Zelensky’s hour-long Oval Office meeting with Trump on Tuesday. Kyrylo Budanov, head of the President’s Office and a member of the Ukrainian delegation at the Washington talks, said the Zelensky-Trump meeting produced agreement to intensify negotiations at all levels. “We held a substantive discussion on the diplomatic and security steps needed to bring a just peace closer,” Budanov said, adding that Kyiv and Washington share a “clear understanding of the need for a swift and just end to the war.” He said the two sides agreed to step up the negotiation process as part of a broader push to accelerate diplomacy. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 97% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.