Trump Peace Envoys Head to Moscow and Kyiv, Diplomacy Goes on a Weekend Tour

US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are set to travel to Russia and Ukraine over the weekend as the Trump administration intensifies its efforts to find a diplomatic route toward ending the war. The two envoys are expected to visit Moscow on Saturday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin before travelling to Ukraine, where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed he will meet them on Sunday. Witkoff and Kushner have taken a prominent role in US President Donald Trump’s attempts to broker a peace agreement between Moscow and Kyiv. Their latest diplomatic tour comes as Washington seek to narrow the substantial differences that continue to separate the two sides. Trump said the envoys would take a proposal to the region aimed at ending the war, although details of the proposal have not been publicly outlined. The planned meetings are taking place against a backdrop of continued fighting, underscoring the challenge facing the diplomatic initiative. On Friday, Zelensky said a Russian drone struck the office of Oleksandr Poklad, who heads Ukraine SBU security service, in Kyiv. Poklad was reportedly unharmed following the incident. Zelensky said on social media that he had instructed Poklad to respond adequately to the attack. Further casualties were reported on Saturday after a Russian strike hit the south, eastern city of Kamianske. Regional authorities said four people were killed and five others injured. Oleksandr Ganzha, head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, announced the casualty figures. The development illustrate the difficult environment in which the latest diplomatic effort is taking place. While US officials are preparing to meet both Russian and Ukrainian leaders, military strikes continue and major disagreements between the two governments remain unresolved. For Washington, the weekend meetings offer an opportunity to put its proposed frame work directly to both sides and assess whether there is sufficient common ground for further negotiations. For Moscow and Kyiv, however, the key question will be whether the US proposal can address the core issues that have kept the conflict going. The meeting there for represent another significant diplomatic test for the Trump administration. Whether they result in substantive negotiations, a temporary reduction in hostilities or simply further exchange of proposal remain to be seen.