‘Real progress depends on Russia’: US and Ukraine enter third day of talks

Progress depends on Russia’s willingness

Ukrainian and US officials are set to continue negotiations in Miami on Saturday for a third consecutive day, after Washington said both sides agreed that “real progress” hinges on Russia’s readiness to bring the war to an end.

President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner have been holding talks with Ukraine’s chief negotiator Rustem Umerov and Andrii Hnatov, the chief of staff of the Ukrainian armed forces.

The latest round follows Witkoff and Kushner’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on Tuesday, where they discussed a US-backed proposal to end the conflict, proposals that Moscow later rejected in part.

“Both parties agreed that real progress toward any agreement depends on Russia's readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace, including steps toward de-escalation and cessation of killings,” a readout of the Miami discussions posted on X by Witkoff on Friday said.

The statement added that US and Ukrainian officials “also agreed on the framework of security arrangements and discussed necessary deterrence capabilities to sustain a lasting peace.”

Washington's plan involves Ukraine surrendering land that Russia has not been able to win on the battlefield in return for security promises that fall short of Kyiv's aspirations to join NATO.

But the nature of the security guarantees that Ukraine could get have so far been shrouded in uncertainty, beyond an initial plan saying that jets to defend Kyiv could be based in Poland.

The US plan has been through several drafts since it first emerged late last month, amid initial criticisms that it was too soft on Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

Witkoff, Trump's former business partner-turned-roving global ambassador, and investor Kushner had hoped to persuade Putin to play ball but came away from Moscow without a deal.

'Genuinely friendly'

Still, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said the five-hour late-night Moscow meeting on Tuesday was cordial and he praised Kushner joining the talks, which have been going on since spring.

Putin and Witkoff "had a genuinely friendly conversation and they understand each other perfectly," Ushakov said on Russian state TV on Friday.

"A new person has joined us, and I would say that he has turned out to be very useful," he said of Kushner.

On the Ukrainian side, Mykhailo Podolyak, an advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, wrote on social media Friday that "the diplomatic process takes place mostly behind the scenes."

"Ukraine seeks to end the war and is ready for talks," Podolyak said, adding: "The United States wants a pragmatic process and a quick end to the war, expecting compromises from both sides."

Trump said Wednesday that the envoys had a "reasonably good meeting" with Putin, insisting that they had the "strong impression" that he would like to end the war.

Trump has blown hot and cold on Ukraine since returning to office in January, initially embracing Putin and chastising Zelensky for not being grateful for US support.

But he has also grown frustrated that his efforts to persuade Putin to end the war, including a summit in Alaska, have failed to produce results and recently slapped sanctions on Russian oil firms.

Putin, who was in India this week meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said the talks were "complex" but that he wanted to engage with Trump's plan "rather than obstruct it."

(With AFP inputs)