US Envoy Witkoff discusses Ukraine Peace Deal with putin
MOSCOW – US Special Envoy for Ukraine, David Witkoff, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin today to discuss a potential peace agreement for Ukraine, as international efforts to end the conflict continue. The meeting comes amid skepticism regarding the sincerity of peace talks, with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy accusing Russia of seeking to leverage negotiations to ease sanctions.
Previously, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine and the US had jointly refined a peace framework initially developed in Geneva, tho details remain undisclosed.A draft of 28 US proposals surfaced last week, reportedly conceding to key Russian demands including NATO limitations, control over approximately 20% of Ukrainian territory, and restrictions on the Ukrainian military. A subsequent European counter-proposal was rejected by Russia as “not constructive.”
Political scientist Gwendolyn sasse, scientific director of the Center for Eastern European and International Studies and Einstein professor at Humboldt University of Berlin, expressed caution about the talks, stating, “The talks are increasingly about economic interests; the negotiations about an end to the war have become a business model.” She added that she is hesitant to characterize the discussions as “real peace negotiations.”
The absence of US Secretary of State Rubio from the Moscow talks was also noted by Sasse as ”not a good sign,” given his recent emphasis on security guarantees for Ukraine. Sasse further asserted that Europe has “missed many opportunities” in its pursuit of a peace plan,failing to adequately address Ukraine’s core concerns regarding security guarantees and potential territorial concessions. She believes meaningful progress requires these issues to be central to negotiations, with the active participation of both European representatives and Ukraine.
This development follows a Deutschlandfunk report on December 2nd, 2025, detailing the ongoing diplomatic efforts.
