A senior envoy closely linked to Donald Trump has confirmed plans for a direct meeting with Vladimir Putin, raising fresh questions about renewed diplomatic contacts between Washington and Moscow.
Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy, said during an interview with CNBC that he is scheduled to meet Putin on Thursday, adding that the request for the meeting came from the Russian side.
“Well, look, we have to meet with him on Thursday,” Witkoff said. “But it’s the Russians who are requesting this meeting. I think it’s an important statement from them.”
No further details were provided regarding the location, format, or agenda of the talks.
The Kremlin said last week that it was preparing to host Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Moscow for discussions related to Ukraine, though officials at the time said no date had been finalized. Russian authorities have not publicly commented on Witkoff’s CNBC remarks.
If the meeting proceeds as planned, it would mark a rare direct engagement between Putin and a senior figure tied closely to Trump, at a time when formal negotiations between Russia and Ukraine remain stalled.
Witkoff and Kushner recently met with Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s special representative, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. That meeting reportedly took place behind closed doors and lasted more than two hours, with no details disclosed publicly.
Diplomatic observers believe the discussions likely focused on a U.S. peace proposal and potential pathways toward ending the Russia-Ukraine war, though neither side has confirmed the substance of the talks.
The announcement comes amid ongoing deadlock on the battlefield and the absence of formal peace negotiations. Analysts note that the involvement of figures closely associated with Trump suggests the existence of parallel diplomatic channels operating alongside official U.S. government policy.
Whether the planned meeting will lead to concrete outcomes remains uncertain, but the confirmation alone has drawn renewed attention to diplomatic maneuvering surrounding the conflict.
