Putin agrees to resume US-mediated Ukraine peace talks, possibly next month

Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to resume US-mediated peace negotiations with Ukraine, potentially as early as next month, the Kremlin announced Wednesday, citing Reuters. The announcement followed a nearly three-hour face-to-face meeting in St. Petersburg between Putin and US envoy Steve Witkoff, during which Putin also announced the release of an American accused by Moscow of fighting as a mercenary for Ukraine. The Kremlin said the new round of trilateral talks, to be held at a technical level, could take place in Abu Dhabi and focus on post-war security guarantees for both Ukraine and Russia, with discussions possibly beginning on November 10 or later. The last US-mediated peace talks occurred in February before Washington and Israel launched a war against Iran. Witkoff told Putin that prior discussions in Oslo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European and NATO representatives showed "a certain degree of dynamism," though Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov said the new proposals were not entirely satisfactory. Putin also offered to help Trump on Iran, citing Russia's decades-long relationship with Tehran, and discussed a potential trilateral meeting with Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in China next month. However, Putin showed few signs of compromising on his central goals, including full Russian control over the Donetsk region, Ukraine's non-membership in NATO, and a comprehensive peace deal rather than a temporary ceasefire.