US hopes to announce ‘next steps’ for Ukraine-Russia talks within weeks

US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and special envoy Jared Kushner said this weekend that he hoped to announce the “next steps” of talks to end the Ukraine war within a “couple of weeks”.

Kushner, along with Trump’s business partner and envoy Steve Witkoff, went to Moscow and Kyiv last week to try to revive US-led talks to end more than four years of war in Ukraine — Europe’s worst conflict since World War II that has killed hundreds of thousands.

The pair’s visit to Kyiv was their first.

Kushner addressed the Yalta European Strategy forum in Kyiv via video call on Friday but his contribution was embargoed until Saturday.

“I really hope in the next couple of weeks we’ll be able to announce what the next steps are,” Kushner said, adding: “And hopefully that will bring us closer to a pathway forward.”

He said Russian leader Vladimir Putin was “committed” to “find a way forward” — which was met with laughter in the conference room in Kyiv.

The US officials met with both Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky.

They expressed optimism about the process but announced no breakthrough in the diplomatic deadlock to end fighting, which began with Moscow’s 2022 invasion.

“These are terribly complex problems. But I think we’re continuing to work forward. I think the engagement with both sides has been very constructive and very positive,” Kushner said.

Several rounds of negotiations last year ended only in exchanges of prisoners of war.

Moscow and Kyiv have not changed their positions. The Kremlin repeatedly said it intends to seize the rest of Ukraine.

In Kyiv, the US envoys said there was progress in the talks, suggesting trilateral talks could take place.

Asked if the pair will return to Kyiv, Kushner said: “We’ll be back when there’s something to talk about, when it’s needed.

He called his visit to Ukraine “very special”, praising the “resilience” of the country.

“I had a good opportunity over the last year to engage with a lot of Ukrainian people and a lot of Ukrainian leaders and a lot of Europeans,” he said of his Kyiv visit, adding:

“And I think we have a very good understanding of how incredible the achievement has been of what Ukraine’s done. But it comes at a real cost.”

He also commended a three-day ceasefire during the talks.

“We’re very happy we were able to deliver a three-day ceasefire so we can make the trip. But hopefully we turn that into something much longer, much more enduring,” he said.

Both countries vowed not to attack their main cities for the talks with US officials.

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