US Envoy Witkoff Meets Putin in St. Petersburg to Discuss Ukraine Peace Deal

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday for talks on ending Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, as President Donald Trump pushes Kyiv toward a peace deal. The three-hour meeting aimed to resume trilateral U.S.-Russia-Ukraine negotiations. The talks followed Witkoff's Tuesday meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders in Oslo, which Finnish President Alexander Stubb said made "genuine progress." Zelenskyy said freezing the conflict was the "minimum" required from Russia, while Witkoff cited "some degree of momentum" before the St. Petersburg session. Russia released retired American teacher Stephen Hubbard as a goodwill gesture, and Putin said he was ready to discuss restoring U.S.-Russia economic ties and using Moscow's relationship with Iran to help bring peace. Trump increased pressure on Zelenskyy to compromise, warning of "a very bad thing" if no deal emerges.