Zelenskyy says Trump envoys preparing Russia and Ukraine visits as Kremlin insists on pre-agreed deals only

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on 31 August that US President Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are preparing to visit both Russia and Ukraine, and suggested that “September could change a lot” in the war. The call came after a week of intensifying US diplomatic activity that included a secret CIA director trip to Moscow and a Kremlin statement that Vladimir Putin would only attend a trilateral meeting with Trump and Zelenskyy to “formalise agreements”, not to negotiate new terms.

Zelenskyy described the conversation with Witkoff and Kushner as “detailed and constructive”, adding that the teams are now “locking in the dates for the visit to Ukraine”. He briefed the envoys on the battlefield situation, saying “Russia’s gains have been sparse and at the cost of huge losses”, and on Ukrainian airstrikes. Source: Ukrainska Pravda

In his evening address that same day, Zelenskyy elaborated: “They are preparing for meetings and corresponding communication with the Russian side, as well as for a visit to Ukraine… We discussed what can be done to encourage Russia to move towards ending the war.” He noted that Ukrainian and partner intelligence indicates that “the Russian leader personally wants more war”, even though “the absolute majority” of Russians “would agree to stop the war along the line of contact”. Source: Ukrainska Pravda

The groundwork for these diplomatic moves was laid in the last week of August. On 25 August, news broke that CIA Director John Ratcliffe was in Moscow. According to Axios, Ratcliffe proposed a trilateral summit between Trump, Zelenskyy and Putin. On 28 August, Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukraine had received information from the US about the Moscow meetings, thanking the American side for “the necessary tone of the conversation with Russia”. Source: Ukrainska Pravda

The Kremlin’s response came swiftly. On 30 August, Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s press secretary, said that a meeting of the three presidents “is possible only to formalise agreements”, adding that “agreements are not at all a primitive deal” and that the presidents meeting to discuss the details would be “absolutely pointless”. Source: Ukrainska Pravda

Meanwhile, on the same day, the Ukrainian team was preparing for new communication with Trump’s envoys, as Zelenskyy noted in his address that “America shares many of our views on the situation both on the front and with the strikes.” Source: Ukrainska Pravda

Separately, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed on 2 September that Washington is negotiating with Kyiv over licences to produce Patriot missile systems. However, he cautioned that even if a licence is granted, setting up production would take “multiple years” and would not solve Ukraine’s immediate air defence needs. Source: Ukrainska Pravda

The coming weeks will test whether the Witkoff-Kushner visits materialise and whether the US can bridge the gap between Kyiv’s demand for a just peace and Moscow’s insistence on a capitulation-style agreement. Zelenskyy’s hint that September could be a turning point is cautious but deliberate: Ukraine’s partners are preparing new steps, but the Kremlin has already drawn its red lines.