Two days before the ultimatum expired by Donald Trump on Vladimir Putin For a peace agreement with Ukraine, it will otherwise face sanctions, the Russian president welcomed earlier today Wednesday (06.08.2025) in the Kremlin the US envoy Steve Whitkov.
Donald Trump’s envoy arrived in Moscow for a meeting with Vladimir Putin on a last -minute mission to pursue a significant progress in the 3.5 -year war that began with Russia’s total invasion – Russia’s state television has promoted a small excerpt where Putin and Whitkov give their hands to the start of their meeting.
Witkov landed in Moscow on Wednesday morning and, according to Reuters, was welcomed by Russian envoy to investment, Kiril Dmitriyev.
Whether Putin can convince Witkov -and by extension Trump -that he wishes to end Russia’s war in Ukraine remains an open question. Trump has expressed doubts about Putin’s will to stop hostilities And it seems cautious, fearing that a leader can mislead him who now openly states that he does not trust.
Putin, for his part, retains his maximalist ambitions for the conflict, Including the occupation of Ukrainian regions Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporizia and Hersona, and insists that Ukraine must limit the size of its armed forces.
Trump, one day before the Whitkov meeting, He said he would wait for the conversations to be completed to decide whether to impose new sanctions.
“We’ll see what happens,” he said from the White House. ‘We will then make the decision’
When asked by a journalist after his arrival in Russia, Whitkov did not express any provision or expectation in view of the talks, according to the Russian state -run TASS news agency.
The climate in Moscow will be very different from the last time Whitkov sat at the same table as Putin in April- as Trump’s dissatisfaction with his Russian counterpart has increased in recent months.
“Witkov’s visit is a last attempt to find a solution that will save the price of both sides. However, I do not think there will be a compromise between the two, “said Gerhard Mangott, Austrian analyst and a member of a team of Western academics and journalists who have been meeting with Putin for years.
“Russia will insist that it is ready for a ceasefire, but (only) under the terms it has already stated in the last two or three years,” he told Reuters.
“Trump will be under pressure to do what he has announced: to increase duties for all countries that buy oil and gas, and possibly heaven, from Russia.”