Trump envoys accept Kremlin demand to expand European security talks

US President Donald Trump's envoys agreed in Moscow talks to expand negotiations on redrawing European security architecture, handing Russian leader Vladimir Putin a major victory. The move accepts a key Kremlin demand for broader postwar security discussions. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner said Europeans could join US-Ukraine-Russia talks only if they discuss broader European security arrangements, which Russia frames as carving out Eastern Europe as a sphere of influence. Russian negotiator Vladimir Medinsky compared the goal to the 1945 Yalta and Potsdam conferences. EU chief Ursula von der Leyen insists a ceasefire must precede broader security talks, while analysts say Putin sees a concrete opening to address his maximalist demands. Former US envoy Ivo Daalder criticized the approach, saying Washington became a supplicant by seeking Putin's consent rather than demanding terms.