# UK minister rejects US envoy’s praise of Putin as Kyiv faces fresh strikes

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/putin-is-not-a-humanitarian-minister-dismisses-trump-envoys-praise-of-russian-president-as-kyiv-is-bombarded-again/
- Published: 2026-10-22T08:33:12+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-22T08:48:12+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16229179/Putin-humanitarian-Trump-envoy-praise-Russian-president-Kyiv-Trump.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: Europe, Government, Politics, World

## Key points

- Douglas Alexander rejected Witkoff’s description of Putin as a humanitarian.
- Russia agreed to release 74-year-old American Stephen Hubbard.
- Ukraine’s allies say a peace deal needs security guarantees.

## Summary

UK Cabinet minister Douglas Alexander rejected the description of Vladimir Putin as a “humanitarian”, used by US envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting with the Russian president. Alexander said the UK views Putin as responsible for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and conduct including attempted assassinations on UK soil, and affirmed support for Ukraine as Kyiv faced renewed airstrikes.

The meeting coincided with Moscow’s agreement to release Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old American jailed in 2022 for fighting for Ukraine, and an in-principle agreement to resume peace talks with Ukraine and the US. Donald Trump said the sides may be closer to ending the war, but Russia has not publicly changed its demands and continues missile attacks. The UK and Finland said any peace deal should include security guarantees for Ukraine.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.