Putin Agrees to Resume Three-Way Talks on Ukraine War

Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed Wednesday to resume three-way negotiations next month with Washington and Kyiv aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, according to a Kremlin official. Putin’s foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov, told reporters that the Russian leader agreed in principle to resume the talks after November 10 following a three-hour meeting in St. Petersburg with U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff.

The discussions will focus on building a security system for Russia and Ukraine after the conflict ends, Ushakov said. The meeting at St. Petersburg’s Constantine Palace came a day after Witkoff met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders in Oslo, Norway. While Ushakov noted that proposals from the Oslo meeting contained little of real value, he acknowledged they represented a step in the direction of diplomacy.

The diplomatic developments unfolded as fighting continued on the battlefield, with overnight Russian attacks hitting energy and residential facilities in Kyiv and near Kharkiv, leaving multiple people dead and wounded. Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that its air defenses intercepted hundreds of Ukrainian drones over multiple regions, Crimea, and the Black Sea.

President Trump has increased pressure on Zelenskyy to reach a compromise, stating at the White House that the U.S. expects Ukraine to make a deal. Zelenskyy, who recently stated that freezing the conflict is a necessary minimum to end the war, discussed future security guarantees, occupied territories, and ceasefire possibilities during his meetings in Oslo. Finland's President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre expressed optimism that diplomacy may be entering a new phase.

During the St. Petersburg visit, Witkoff thanked Putin for releasing Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old American teacher who had been imprisoned in Russia for four years. However, Witkoff faced immediate backlash from several U.S. lawmakers after praising Putin as a humanitarian following the release, with Republican critics strongly condemning the remark.

Beyond peace talks, Putin and Witkoff discussed potential U.S.-Russia economic ties and the prospect of a trilateral meeting next month between Putin, Trump, and Chinese leader Xi Jinping during an economic summit in China. Putin also met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in St. Petersburg as Moscow continues to cultivate its strategic relationship with Beijing.