Trump Envoy Carries Peace Proposals to Putin in St. Petersburg

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff is traveling to St. Petersburg to present updated peace proposals to Russian President Vladimir Putin. These proposals were developed in Oslo, Norway, during meetings between Witkoff, Volodymyr Zelensky, and leaders from Norway, Finland, and other European allies. The diplomatic push aims to establish a pathway toward a trilateral summit between Putin, Zelensky, and Donald Trump, potentially including an energy ceasefire.

During the Oslo talks, Zelensky confirmed that U.S. intelligence sharing for early warnings of Russian attacks has been restored after a week-long pause. He also expressed a willingness to cease Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries if Moscow takes reciprocal steps, a condition pressed by U.S. adviser Jared Kushner. These developments follow tensions between the U.S. and Ukraine over Starlink access and refinery attacks.

Russia has signaled openness to proposals offering economic and financial benefits, though Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov ruled out any political or territorial concessions. The Kremlin is also using envoy Kirill Dmitriev to present business opportunities intended to appeal to the mercantile interests of Donald Trump. While Trump stated that Russia would like to resolve the conflict, he warned that if Ukraine does not make a deal, the situation will only get worse for the country.