U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff said Tuesday that he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin sees an opportunity for the “first time in decades” for a U.S.-Russia relationship recalibration.
“I think that … he sees the opportunity for the first time in decades, to recalibrate the relationship of the Russian Federation with the United States, and it’s clear,” Witkoff told radio hosts John Catsimatidis and Rita Cosby on their WABC show.
“I’ve had four meetings with him, and not one of them was less than three hours,” he added. “And there was one that was close to five hours.”
In the first few months of President Trump’s return to the White House, his administration has pushed for an end to the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia, talking to both sides and pushing for peace.
A recent meeting between Witkoff and Putin brought the U.S. and Russia “closer” when it comes to Ukraine, according to the Kremlin. The two met in Moscow along with Kremlin foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov and Putin’s investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev.
“This conversation allowed Russia and the United States to further bring their positions closer together, not only on Ukraine but also on a number of other international issues,” Ushakov said in the wake of the meeting.
“As for the Ukrainian crisis itself, the discussion focused in particular on the possibility of resuming direct negotiations,” the aide added.
Over the weekend, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the “only solution” for the war in Ukraine is a negotiation where both Ukraine and Russia “give up something.”
“There is no military solution to this war,” Rubio told NBC News’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press.” “The only solution to this war is a negotiated settlement where both sides are going to have to give up something they claim to want, and are going to have to give the other side something they wish they didn’t.”
“That’s how you end wars, and that’s what we’re trying to achieve here so more people won’t die,” he added.
