Witkoff arrives in St. Petersburg for talks with Putin

U.S. President Donald Trump's special representative Steve Witkoff arrived in St. Petersburg on Wednesday, October 21, where he is to hold talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on ending the war against Ukraine. The American representative brought to Russia proposals that were discussed the day before with Ukraine and European partners in Oslo.

Russian media reported Witkoff's arrival. Information about his arrival was also confirmed by Reuters, citing two sources familiar with the organization of the visit.

At Pulkovo Airport, the American negotiator was met by Putin's special representative for investment and economic cooperation, Kirill Dmitriev. From there, they went together to the Konstantinovsky Palace in St. Petersburg, where the talks are planned.

Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed that the main topic of the meeting will be Russia's war against Ukraine. According to him, the talks are to take place in the first half of the day on October 21. They were agreed in advance, over several previous days.

Ushakov also said that Dmitriev will join the talks from the Russian side. Meanwhile, the son-in-law of the American president, Jared Kushner, who participates in diplomatic contacts regarding Ukraine, did not arrive in St. Petersburg due to illness.

Witkoff's visit comes the day after talks in Norway. On October 20, he met in Oslo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. Kushner joined the discussions remotely.

According to the Office of the President of Ukraine, the consultation participants discussed security guarantees for Ukraine and possible steps to end the war. The American side confirmed the need for reliable security guarantees, and Witkoff agreed to convey the developed ideas to the Russian side and subsequently inform Kyiv about the results of the contacts.

As Axios previously reported, the Trump administration hopes that these proposals will help move to direct trilateral negotiations between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia, and later to a broader multilateral format. At the same time, the specific content of the proposed agreements has not been publicly disclosed.

Before the meeting, Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow's position on a possible energy truce with Ukraine remains unchanged. According to him, the Russian side supposedly seeks a full-fledged peaceful settlement, not a temporary ceasefire.

Ushakov also claims that Moscow did not contact Zelenskyy directly during previous negotiations on ending the war.

At the time of reports of Witkoff's arrival at the Konstantinovsky Palace, the start of his direct meeting with Putin had not yet been confirmed. No possible agreements as a result of the talks are currently known.

Based on materials from: Reuters, Office of the President of Ukraine, Axios