Overview
- Rustem Umierov traveled to the United States to meet U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, a Ukrainian official told POLITICO on condition of anonymity.
- Washington has not announced the meeting, and Kyiv officials offered no agenda, reflecting tight control of information around the talks.
- Negotiations with Moscow remain frozen as Vladimir Putin demands Ukrainian troop withdrawals from parts of Donetsk that Russia has not taken by force.
- Kyiv rejects giving up territory and has pushed for clear security guarantees and progress on humanitarian issues, which Umierov and Witkoff discussed in a March meeting in Florida.
- Ukrainian officials have bristled at envoys’ reluctance to visit Kyiv, noting Witkoff’s multiple trips to Moscow, and Zelenskyy says a U.S. focus on the Middle East has reduced pressure on Russia.