Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that “the situation is not easy” at the beginning of the meeting with the White House envoys in Moscow to seek to revive the peace process with Ukraine.
© Mikhail METZEL / POOL / AFP via Getty Images
05/09/2026
by
Lusa
“ The situation we will deal with today is not, of course, easy,” Putin said.
The Russian leader began the meeting to convey “first best wishes” to the President of the United States, Donald Trump.
On Friday, Trump confirmed that his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would travel to Moscow and Kiev this weekend to try to revive the talks between Russia and Ukraine to put an end to the war.
The two countries at war announced the suspension of the attacks between today and Monday, during the visit of the American representatives.
After the meeting with Trump, the envoys should be received in Kiev by the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, at the first meeting between the two negotiators and the Ukrainian leader. Witkoff and Kushner have met with the Russian authorities several times.
The trip takes place a year after Trump received Putin in Alaska in August 2025, in an attempt to end the war, one of the Republican campaign promises. The meeting, however, ended without agreement.
Trump is trying to reintegrate Russia on the international stage, having invited Moscow to attend the meetings of the G20 Finance Ministers held last week in North Carolina (United States).
The Russian military offensive against Ukrainian territory, launched on 24 February 2022, plunged Europe into what is considered the most serious security crisis since World War II (1939–1945).