US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will travel to Moscow on Sunday in a bid to secure a breakthrough in negotiations over the Ukraine conflict, according to US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker.
Trump has confirmed Witkoff’s planned visit to Russia but did not provide an exact timeline. The envoy has previously met Russian President Vladimir Putin on several occasions during earlier diplomatic initiatives.
“I’m hoping he can have a breakthrough,” Whitaker told US broadcaster WHO 13 News, speaking about Witkoff’s upcoming trip.
Whitaker also indicated that Washington aims to boost arms sales to NATO allies, which would then supply Ukraine, as part of an effort to press Moscow and Kiev back to the negotiating table.
“I’m hoping that by the United States leaning in, selling our weapons to our NATO allies, that that will lead the Russians back to the negotiating table and actually get to a ceasefire here,” Whitaker said.
Earlier this week, Trump dramatically cut his initial 50-day window for Russia and Ukraine to reach a peace agreement down to just ten days. He warned that failure to do so could result in severe penalties, including 100% tariffs and secondary sanctions targeting Russia’s trading partners.
The acting US envoy to the UN, John Kelley, confirmed that Trump expects a ceasefire by 8 August, as the president has shown growing frustration with Moscow’s position in recent weeks.
Putin, for his part, has maintained that Moscow is open to negotiations and has never rejected talks in principle. “Negotiations are always required and important, especially when they lead to peace,” the Russian leader said earlier this week.
He noted that previous rounds of talks had yielded progress, including prisoner exchanges and the return of fallen soldiers’ remains.
Moscow views the conflict in Ukraine as a Western proxy war against Russia, claiming that Washington and its allies are determined to fight “to the last Ukrainian.”
The Kremlin has repeatedly said hostilities could end if Kiev accepted neutrality and reversed policies that Moscow claims discriminate against ethnic Russians.
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