Envoys Meet Putin, Head to Dublin
Following the first direct talks in nine months, U.S. negotiators travel to Ireland as the invasion nears its fifth anniversary.
By Elena Greco ·
U.S. special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner departed the Kremlin on Thursday after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The pair immediately prepared to fly to Dublin, Ireland, where they will meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
This diplomatic shuttle follows a two-day session in Abu Dhabi that concluded on Wednesday. Those discussions marked the first direct engagement between Moscow and Kyiv representatives in nine months. While the talks did not yield a major breakthrough, both sides agreed to swap a large number of prisoners. The specific number of detainees in the exchange has not yet been announced.
The sequence of events occurs as the Russian invasion of Ukraine approaches its five-year mark. The envoys brokered the recent Abu Dhabi meetings, which laid the groundwork for the current push toward peace.
A primary goal of the Kremlin meeting was to secure Putin’s approval for European representatives to join the negotiations. These discussions aim to address security arrangements for the continent. The United States and Ukraine prefer a single European negotiator to deal with Moscow. The Kremlin has resisted this involvement, citing European financing and supply of Ukraine’s war effort.
Putin reaffirmed Moscow’s rejection of any European troop presence in Ukraine in a post-war scenario. He described such forces as a security threat and warned they would become legitimate targets. The Russian leader also indicated that Russia views its current border with Ukraine as the line of control. This refers to the four Ukrainian regions Moscow annexed in 2022 but has not fully captured.
In Dublin, Zelenskyy is attending a meeting with more than 40 European countries. The gathering includes NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. Rutte stated that the U.S., Europe, and Ukraine are closely aligned on the structure of security guarantees following a January meeting in Paris. He emphasized the urgent need for a peace deal or at least a ceasefire.
Zelenskyy described the proposed prisoner exchange as a positive step. However, he insisted that Ukraine will not surrender Russian-occupied territory in exchange for peace. Both sides remain far apart on the terms for a final settlement.
Fighting continues along the 1,200-kilometer front line. Russia’s larger army has been held back by Ukrainian resistance. Moscow’s drone and missile strikes aim to disrupt civilian infrastructure. Kyiv calls this strategy the weaponization of winter. Ukrainian air force officials reported that Russia launched missiles and 123 drones overnight. The attack included 73 jet-powered drones. Hits were recorded at 17 locations. Russia’s Defence Ministry stated its air defenses downed 71 Ukrainian drones and struck a drone-making plant in Kyiv along with three other facilities.
Ukrainian military units also reported disruptions in the U.S. Starshield system, the military-grade version of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet. Zelenskyy said military units experienced speed restrictions, limiting drones to 161 kilometers per hour. A military investigation found these restrictions were not random errors. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk acknowledged that the service had been throttled for about a week. He cited offensive strike capabilities as the reason for the throttling.
