Ukraine war live: Trump envoy Steve Witkoff set to meet Vladimir Putin in Moscow amid US push for peace deal | Russia
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Finland and Sweden announced increased cooperation between neighboring Nordic countries, including in defence, civil preparedness and cybersecurity.
In a joint statement, the Swedish Prime Minister said: Ulf Kristerssonand its Finnish counterpart Petteri OrpoHe said they would deepen bilateral cooperation in response to Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine and increasing geopolitical and economic challenges.
The statement stated the following:
This work is carried out with a clear focus on interoperability and joint action against external threats.
Since last year, Sweden has also assumed the role of a framework country for NATO’s forward-looking land force, FLF Finland. [Nato’s forward land forces]This is one step in our common commitment to the security of the region.
who Steve Witkoff? The American real estate developer, who was the US president’s loyal ambassador, had a friendship with him Donald Trump It dates back to a late-night encounter at a New York deli.
Witkoff is now key to Trump’s efforts to broker a deal to end the war in Ukraine and had previously brokered a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza war.
Witkoff and Trump go back nearly 40 years. And as Julian Borger That’s what gives the 67-year-old businessman his clout, Witkoff wrote in a profile earlier this year. America’s interlocutors know him as the genial messenger of a mercurial leader who can shift from obnoxious support to public disdain in a heartbeat, depending largely on who has Trump’s ear.
You can read the full profile here:
Today’s talks between them Vladimir Putin and Trump ambassador Steve Witkoff According to Reuters, Russian forces control more than 19% of Ukraine (115,600 square kilometers), up one point from two years ago.
According to pro-Ukrainian maps, Russian forces made the fastest advance in 2025 since 2022.
As previously reported, Russian military commanders told Putin on Monday that Russian forces had captured the Ukrainian front-line towns of Pokrovsk and Vovchansk.
Pokrovsk is known as the “gateway to Donetsk” and has been the center of attention for more than a year for Moscow, which is trying to take control of the entire eastern Donetsk region.
Ukrainian authorities have not released any confirmation that either town fell into Russian hands.
U.S. officials say more than 1.2 million men were killed or wounded in the war. Neither Ukraine nor Russia discloses their losses.
Amid intense diplomatic efforts to end the Ukraine war, Volodymyr Zelenskyy He said the Kremlin’s claims about advances on the battlefield were exaggerated and that Kiev’s priorities remained security guarantees, sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The Ukrainian president also insisted that Russia should not receive rewards for its aggression against Ukraine.
As Warren Murray noted at today’s Ukraine war briefing, Zelenskyy said he hoped to meet him in Paris. Donald Trump To discuss next steps when Steve Witkoff returns from his meetings in Russia.
Zelenskyy also said that the peace plan circulating between Ukraine, Russia and Washington “looks better” after revisions and that work will continue.
However, as mentioned before, the European Union warns that the Putin-Wifkoff talks will put additional pressure on Ukraine to make concessions. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallasin question:
For the sake of peace, we must not lose sight of the fact that it was Russia that started this war, it is Russia that continues this war, and that Russia is actually targeting civilians, civilian infrastructure every day, causing as much damage as possible.
You can read the full battle briefing here:
Kremlin said Vladimir Putin’s will meet Steve Witkoff for their meeting on Tuesday afternoon. It is now approaching 9.10am local time in Moscow.
Kremlin spokesman said the meeting would last “in the second half of the day” Dmitry Peskov He said megaphone diplomacy was not working as he refused to retreat to Russia’s red lines.
As a reminder, the talks come as Witkoff comes under fire after advising a Kremlin official last month that achieving peace in Ukraine would require Russia taking control of Donetsk and potentially a separate territorial swap. recording of conversations Obtained by Bloomberg.
In a telephone conversation on October 14 Yuri UshakovWitkoff, Putin’s top foreign policy adviser, said he believed the land concessions were necessary while advising Ushakov to congratulate Trump and frame the discussions more optimistically.
Like Joseph Gideon And Hugo Lowell The recording reportedly provided a direct insight into Witkoff’s approach to negotiations and appeared to reveal the origins of the controversial US 28-point peace proposal that emerged in early November.
Their stories can be seen here:
Opening summary
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the war in Ukraine. Donald Trump‘s special envoy Steve Witkoff He will meet with the Russian president Vladimir Putin He is in Moscow amid Washington’s efforts to reach a peace agreement.
Witkoff’s trip comes after he led a U.S. delegation in talks with Ukraine in Florida over the weekend, three and a half years after Russia’s full-scale invasion.
US optimistic about chances of reaching deal to end war, White House press secretary says Karoline Leavitt “Management is feeling pretty optimistic,” he told reporters on Monday.
But Kiev’s European allies have expressed concern that the US peace plan falls too far short of Moscow’s maximalist demands. EU foreign policy chief Kaja KallasHe said he feared Tuesday’s Putin-Witkoff talks would put pressure on Ukraine to make concessions.
Witkoff, Trump’s business partner and traveling ambassador, was expected to come to Russia with Trump’s son-in-law. Jared Kushner. The Kremlin did not make a statement about whether Kushner would attend the meeting with Putin.
In other developments:
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In their statements on Monday, Russian military commanders told Putin that Russian forces have captured Ukraine’s important frontline logistics center towns of Pokrovsk and Vovchansk. They were moving on to other places, which the Russian president praised as achievements that would lead to greater gains. Ukrainian officials did not make any statement that both places fell into Russian hands.
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Russia should not be rewarded for its invasion, Zelenskyy said on Monday. “We also need to ensure that Russia does not perceive anything that it may consider as a reward for this war,” the Ukrainian said at a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron.
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Ukraine’s president also met with a dozen other leadersThey include British prime minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who are trying to rally support from European allies. “Peace must truly become permanent,” Zelenskyy wrote to X. “The war must end as soon as possible.”
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Ukraine’s negotiator Rustem Umerov said “significant progress” had been made After two days of talks with Witkoff and other US officials in Florida, it was said that more work was needed on “tough” issues.
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The Moscow talks also took place at a time when Kiev was facing a corruption scandal This has shaken Zelenskyy’s inner circle and led to the dismissal last week of his chief negotiator and chief of staff, Andriy Yermak.
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4 people died in Russia’s missile attack About two dozen people were also injured in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Monday, the regional governor said.
