Hours after President Vladimir Putin said the Kremlin was ready to resume trilateral peace talks next month, Russia attacked the Ukrainian capital Kiev with a massive missile attack overnight on Thursday.
At the request of U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff during a three-hour meeting on Wednesday, Putin said he was ready to resume talks between Ukraine and the United States after November 10. But a recent diplomatic push — during which Mr. Witkov controversially called Mr. Putin a “humanitarian” for freeing detained Americans — was followed by a 21-missile and 210-drone attack on Ukraine.
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that his administration is “the closest we’ve ever been” to resolving the Ukraine war. The first explosion hit Kiev three minutes before he made these comments.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced on Thursday that two people had been killed and 34 others injured in a massive airstrike. Ukrainian officials said a cluster warhead also struck central Kiev.
“Russian ‘humanitarians’ have launched three waves of ballistic attacks against Kiev since this evening,” President Zelenskiy said. “This means that there is no real change in attitude towards everything that is happening.
“If Russian ballistic missiles are a response to negotiations, then we must put real pressure on Russia to take other measures, measures that stop the killing,” he added, calling for the rapid deployment of air defense missiles.
Ukraine’s air force said none of the ballistic missiles that hit Kiev were intercepted, but the country faces a severe shortage of U.S.-made Patriot defense missiles. Air raid sirens continued to sound in Kiev on Thursday, warning of the possibility of further ballistic missile attacks.
Another Russian attack on the central market in the city of Rozova in Kharkiv region on Thursday killed at least two shoppers and injured dozens, the city’s mayor said.
Meanwhile, in Russia, the mayor of Moscow announced that 630 drones had flown into the region overnight, leading to an attack in rural Voronovo region that left two people injured. Most of them were intercepted.
Despite positive comments about the possibility of future negotiations, so far there is no sign that Russia has changed its extremist position.
Russia’s previous demands amount to a near total victory, calling for Ukraine to relinquish the entire Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, much of which is currently under Russian occupation. The Russian government also called on Ukraine to significantly reduce the size of its military and pledge never to join NATO.
In a press conference after the meeting, Putin’s close aide Yuri Ushakov said the Kremlin wanted to discuss building a “security framework” for both Russia and Ukraine after the conflict ends, but gave no further details about what Russia would demand as part of that framework.
In response to a question from Russia’s state-run news channel Russia 24, Ushakov said the next three-nation round could be held in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
President Zelenskiy said on Wednesday that he hoped to hold talks “by early November at the latest.”
“Russia said many times that it was ready for talks, but then the situation changed and it was called off,” Zelenskiy added. “Let’s see what happens this time.”
The meeting in St. Petersburg took place the day after a summit between Mr. Vitkov and Mr. Zelenskiy in Norway. In a post on X late Wednesday, the US envoy said the talks with the two leaders were “constructive” and that discussions would continue in the tripartite talks.
“While important work remains to be done, President Trump remains committed to ending this war and achieving a comprehensive and lasting peace,” he wrote.
In recent talks, Putin also expressed interest in restoring economic cooperation with the United States and the possibility of talks with China to discuss the Ukraine issue. This follows recent moves by the Trump administration to lift sanctions against Russia and enter into a deal on diesel exports.
Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev told the media after the meeting that there was “no question” that economic cooperation between the United States and Russia would continue, adding that the recently announced diesel deal between the two countries would be implemented despite European criticism.
A key outcome of the talks was Witkoff’s announcement that Russia had released Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old American prisoner who had been held in the country for more than four years. A video obtained by CNN after the meeting showed a freed American detainee speaking with Witkoff at the St. Petersburg airport.
Putin, Witkov and their interpreters also sat around a large round table to discuss a wide range of issues, including Russia’s willingness to help resolve the Iran war, the possibility of Russian fertilizer exports to the United States and Hubbard’s release. The meeting continued behind closed doors, with Trump’s son-in-law Kushner, who is also involved in peace negotiations, participating remotely because he has the flu.
The United States and Ukraine made “significant progress” in Tuesday’s negotiations with Norway, a U.S. official previously told CNN, adding that the two countries are now “strongly aligned” on what the next steps will be.
“Discussions addressed key elements of a comprehensive peace framework, including Ukraine’s long-term security, a postwar economic and prosperity plan, and a broader European security architecture designed to create lasting stability,” the US official said.
But Kremlin aide Ushakov poured cold water on these discussions, saying that Vitkov emphasized to Putin “certain new approaches and developments in the positions taken by European countries and Kiev…In fact, these contain little real value in resolving the Ukraine crisis.”
Ukraine and its allies have reiterated key red lines set by Kiev regarding any peace talks, including future security needs to prevent Russia from re-invading and rejecting any demands to relinquish territory under its control.
In a Fox News interview on Wednesday, President Zelenskiy reiterated his long-standing position that Ukraine would accept a cease-fire agreement that includes a freeze along its current front lines (which includes retaining only about 75% of Ukraine’s land mass) and then seek meaningful security from its allies.
US envoy Witkoff calls President Putin a ‘humanitarian’
U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg, calling him a “humanitarian.”
Zelenskiy also said Ukraine wanted tripartite negotiations involving Trump, Putin and himself, but that the process would be “better with European countries.”
“I have always said that I am ready to negotiate in any format and on any topic, but please don’t talk about us without us,” he said, balking at the possibility of a Russia-China-U.S. deal.
“I don’t think having a plan is as big an issue as getting Russia to take any plan seriously,” a European official in Oslo told CNN.
This story has been updated with additional developments.
