Russia Says 'Meaningful' Meeting With US On Ukraine Peace Proposal Ends 'No Closer' To Deal

By RFE/RL's Russian Service and RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service December 02, 2025

Summary

US envoy Steve Witkoff and a delegation met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on a proposal aimed at ending Russia's war against Ukraine.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said the conversation, which lasted almost five hours, was "useful, constructive, and meaningful."
A US proposal, which has been revised to 19 points from 28 points, addresses contentious issues like Ukraine's NATO ambitions and control of the Donbas region, but key disagreements persist.
Ukraine fears the deal might leave it vulnerable to future Russian aggression, despite a proposed 10-year US security guarantee.

A US delegation led by special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and his aides for almost five hours at the Kremlin on December 2 for talks on a proposal aimed at ending Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

On a day of intense diplomatic efforts to end Europe's largest and deadliest conflict since World War II, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said there is a better chance "now than ever" to reach a deal.

But just before the talks, Putin accused European governments of trying to block the peace process and warned if Europe wants to start a war with Russia then Moscow was ready to fight.

Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy adviser, told a press pool after the meeting at the Kremlin that peace was no closer nor further away.

"We did not discuss particular wordings the Americans prepared, but the essence of the message. Some things suit us. Some things were met with our criticism," Ushakov said, noting territorial issues were a particular sticking point.

"We do not see a chance to resolve the Ukraine crisis without territorial issues. To really move forward it is time both for Moscow and Washington to seriously get to work."

Witkoff didn't comment immediately, leaving for the US embassy in Moscow.

Witkoff and U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, flew to the Russian capital to meet Putin and senior negotiators after an initial 28-point U.S. proposal.

That document -- widely seen as aligning with several Russian objectives -- was "refined" to 19 points following talks between American and Ukrainian delegations last week.

European governments had also submitted amendments and a counterproposal to the draft plan, seeking to remove or soften provisions they said undermined Ukraine's sovereignty.

But Moscow has rejected those European changes outright and Ushakov said Putin "definitely presented his assessment of the destructive role the Europeans are playing in the peace process."

Speaking ahead of his meeting with Witkoff and Kushner, Putin said Russia was prepared to involve European states in negotiations as long as they recognize what he called "the realities on the battlefield" in Ukraine.

"We have no intention of fighting Europe, I've said that 100 times," Putin said. "But if Europe wants to fight again and starts, then we are ready for that immediately."

The European Union has repeatedly said it will not accept a violent redrawing of Europe's borders and that only Ukraine can decide the future of its territory.

Putin has insisted Ukraine surrender the eastern Donbas region to secure peace, including areas Russia has failed to seize in more than three and a half years of war. Kyiv has rejected those conditions and pushed back on Moscow's attempts to limit Ukraine's NATO aspirations or cap the size of its armed forces.

"Our common task is to end the war, not just to achieve a pause in hostilities. A dignified peace is needed. For this to truly happen, everyone must be on the side of peace," Zelenskyy said at a press conference in Dublin after meeting with Ireland's prime minister, Micheal Martin, on December 2.

Ukraine has openly voiced concerns that Washington and Moscow will agree to a plan to end Europe's largest and deadliest conflict since World War II.

Trump campaigned in 2024 on a claim he could solve the war in 24 hours, but getting an agreement to end Russia's full-scale invasion -- launched in February 2022 -- has proven difficult. Trump has expressed frustration with both sides as talks sputtered for months until intensifying once again in recent weeks.

Moscow has repeatedly said it must control all of Donetsk, one of five Ukrainian regions Putin baselessly claims are Russian. Ceding land that Ukraine's forces have kept out of Russia's clutches at great cost would be a massive concession by Kyiv and could have political repercussions for Zelenskyy.

Ukraine fears some terms of any peace plan will leave it prone to eventual conquest by Russia, though the United States has also floated a 10-year security guarantee for Kyiv.

Putin has said he is ready to talk peace but that if Ukraine refuses an agreement, then Russia's forces will advance further and take more Ukrainian territory.

Some of Witkoff's prior actions have raised alarm bells to outside observers,who fear he is being manipulated or that he misunderstands the war's deeply intractable historical contours.

Witkoff has relied on translators provided by the Kremlin for his conversations with Putin and other officials rather than using translators authorized by the US Embassy.

After Witkoff's last meeting with Putin in August, US and European officials said the envoy misunderstood the geography of Ukrainian territory Putin was claiming.

Several media outlets quoted sources as saying Witkoff and Kushner could meet Zelenskyy after the Kremlin talks.

Zelenskyy said he expects to hear from the US team right after the Moscow talks and that he remains ready to meet Trump depending on the outcome of the December 2 discussions.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/zelenskyy-witkoff-putin- peace-proposal-trump/33611074.html

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Russia Says 'Meaningful' Meeting With US On Ukraine Peace Proposal Ends 'No Closer' To Deal

Summary