Trump envoy Steve Witkoff meets Putin in Kremlin to push Ukraine peace deal

US signals willingness to freeze Ukraine war front line as Trump urges Putin to stop offensive.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin (right) greets U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff (left) before their meeting in Moscow on April 25, 2025, in this pool photograph distributed by Russian state agency Sputnik. Photo by Kristina Kormilitsyna/AFP

By Anna Fadiah and Hayu Andini

In a pivotal diplomatic move underscoring Washington’s renewed push for peace in Ukraine, Trump envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Friday. The meeting marks a significant development in the ongoing efforts to end the brutal conflict between Russia and Ukraine, now entering its third year with no clear resolution in sight.

The high-profile encounter between Witkoff and Putin comes just one day after former U.S. President Donald Trump, now back in the White House, made a public appeal to the Russian leader, demanding an end to Russia’s military operations in Ukraine. Trump took to social media to post a blunt message: “Vladimir, STOP!” followed by, “Let’s get the Peace Deal DONE!”

Trump envoy Steve Witkoff meets Putin, captures the essence of this increasingly urgent diplomatic maneuver, as the United States explores unconventional paths to bring a halt to a war that has caused tens of thousands of deaths and displaced millions.

A rare moment of diplomacy in Moscow

Video footage released by Russian state media showed Steve Witkoff, a billionaire real estate magnate turned diplomatic intermediary, smiling and shaking hands with Putin before entering a closed-door session. The footage marked the fourth time Witkoff has met with the Russian president since Trump returned to office in January.

Despite several rounds of negotiations, Trump's peace envoy has yet to secure major concessions from Moscow. However, U.S. officials remain hopeful that a series of quiet, high-level meetings could lead to a deal to freeze the conflict, even if it falls short of a full resolution.

“The fact that Witkoff has met Putin repeatedly is a sign of how seriously both sides are now taking these talks,” one U.S. official said on background. “But we’re still far from any agreement.”

Trump ups pressure for results

President Trump has made no secret of his impatience with the slow pace of progress. In public remarks on Thursday, he made it clear that the current approach has a short shelf life.

“If I don’t see movement toward a ceasefire, I won’t be happy, let me put it that way. Things will happen,” Trump said cryptically.

The administration has remained tight-lipped about the specific content of its peace plan. However, several officials and reports suggest that the White House is open to recognizing the current battlefield status quo. That would involve freezing the front line and acknowledging Russian control of Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014, as part of a final deal.

In an interview published by TIME magazine on Friday, Trump was quoted saying, “Crimea will stay with Russia. And Zelensky understands that.”

Ukraine’s rejection of territorial compromise

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly rejected any peace deal that would involve ceding land to Russia. Kyiv maintains that it will never formally recognize Moscow’s claim to Crimea or any other occupied territories.

Nevertheless, there have been recent indications that Zelensky might be willing to accept a temporary diplomatic solution — such as freezing the front line — provided there is a clear path toward regaining lost territory through future negotiations.

Speaking during a visit to South Africa on Thursday, Zelensky criticized the lack of meaningful pressure being placed on the Kremlin.

“I don’t see any strong pressure on Russia or any new sanctions packages against Russia’s aggression,” he said. His comments came just hours before Witkoff met Putin in Moscow.

Trump accused of appeasing Putin

Critics of the Trump administration’s Ukraine policy argue that the U.S. president is offering too much and asking too little of Russia. Trump’s public statements have often leaned toward portraying Zelensky as an obstacle to peace, while framing Putin as a potential partner.

On Thursday, Trump described Moscow’s key concession as simply “stopping taking the whole country,” a phrase that drew sharp criticism from Ukrainian officials and Western analysts alike.

With Russia now occupying roughly 20 percent of Ukraine’s territory — including parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions — the stakes for any peace deal are extremely high. So far, Moscow has shown no signs of withdrawing from any of the occupied areas.

Witkoff, for his part, appears to support a compromise that would involve some acceptance of Russian gains. In a recent interview with Fox News, he mentioned that a settlement would likely hinge on the future status of what he called “the so-called five territories.” This sparked a fierce backlash from Zelensky, who accused the U.S. envoy of “spreading Russian narratives.”

Drone strikes underscore the urgency

Even as the diplomacy played out in Moscow, the war raged on across Ukraine. In the early hours of Friday, Russia launched more than 100 drones into Ukrainian territory, Ukrainian military officials said. A drone strike killed at least three people, including a child, in the central city of Pavlograd, according to emergency services.

Meanwhile, a separate incident — which bore the hallmarks of earlier covert Ukrainian operations — resulted in the death of a pro-Russian militia leader in Russian-controlled territory. Ukraine did not claim responsibility, but the timing added another layer of tension to the already delicate negotiations.

What happens next?

Friday’s meeting between Trump envoy Steve Witkoff and Vladimir Putin may yet become a turning point in the Ukraine conflict. However, the path forward remains riddled with uncertainty.

While the Kremlin has so far rejected Zelensky’s calls for an unconditional ceasefire, some analysts believe Moscow might entertain a freeze on current hostilities in exchange for de facto recognition of its territorial control.

Yet for Ukraine, that kind of deal could be politically toxic. Many Ukrainians view any compromise on territory as a betrayal of their sovereignty and a reward for Russian aggression.

For Trump, the next few weeks could determine whether his unconventional diplomacy pays off or backfires. His critics accuse him of appeasing Putin; his supporters argue that he’s the only leader capable of ending the war through direct, personal diplomacy.

As the world watches these delicate talks unfold, the outcome could reshape the geopolitical landscape of Europe for years to come.

Whether or not Trump envoy Steve Witkoff meets Putin again in the coming weeks, this latest encounter at the Kremlin signals that backchannel diplomacy is in full motion — and that the quest for peace, however fraught, continues.