# US envoys arrive in Ukraine for talks after meeting Putin in Russia

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/us-envoys-arrive-in-ukraine-for-talks-after-meeting-putin-in-russia/
- Published: 2026-09-06T23:37:09+00:00
- Updated: 2026-09-07T05:43:09+00:00
- Original publisher: BBC World (publisher lean: Centre)
- Original article: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6248nvqy8po?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss
- Topics: Americas, Europe, World

## Key points

- US envoys met Putin, then Zelensky, without a breakthrough.
- Zelensky expects war to continue into winter, seeks more air defence.
- Ukraine, Europe, US officials to meet again; Zelensky wants Russia included.

## Summary

US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner held several hours of closed-door talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, their first visit to Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion, a day after meeting Vladimir Putin in Moscow. The talks ended without a major breakthrough, and Zelensky said he now expects the war to continue into winter, when Ukraine would need sustained air defence and energy support; both sides nonetheless described the discussions positively, with Witkoff calling them "substantive" and "encouraging" and saying progress had been made in Moscow.

Zelensky said officials from Ukraine, Europe and the US would meet again shortly to keep negotiations moving, and he renewed calls for a trilateral meeting including Russia, while stressing he wanted a just peace that prevented renewed Russian aggression. He flagged Ukraine's reliance on American Patriot interceptors, depleted by the US war with Iran, and said Kyiv wants to build its own anti-ballistic capability while the US ramps up production next year. Putin and Zelensky agreed a three-day halt to strikes on each other's capitals to allow the envoys' trip, though Russian and Ukrainian forces kept exchanging strikes elsewhere; Russia fired 108 long-range drones and missiles overnight, with 82 drones and six missiles intercepted but 11 locations hit, while Ukraine struck an oil refinery, an airfield and air defence systems. Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov called the Moscow talks "constructive, extremely frank", noting they covered ending the war, economic issues and potential joint projects, while also citing Russian battlefield gains and the need to address the conflict's "root causes".

## Coverage

- [BBC World: US envoys arrive in Ukraine for talks after meeting Putin in Russia](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6248nvqy8po?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss)
- [Fox News: Kushner, Witkoff set for Kyiv talks after Putin meeting in US push for peace](https://www.foxnews.com/politics/kushner-witkoff-set-kyiv-talks-after-putin-meeting-us-push-peace)
- [The Hill: Trump envoys set for Zelensky meeting after Russia-Ukraine peace talks with Putin](https://thehill.com/policy/international/6073737-trump-envoy-kyiv-peace-talks-zelensky-putin/)
- [BBC World: Peace talks rich in symbolism but fundamental differences between Russia and Ukraine remain](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c980j5m8mpro?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss)

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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.