Witkoff-Putin talks seen as step toward peace, says White House

The recent meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US Special Envoy Steve Whitkoff has been described by the White House as a further step toward achieving peace in Ukraine.

White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt characterized the talks as part of an ongoing negotiation process aimed at reaching a ceasefire and ultimately securing a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

She indicated that Washington was committed to bringing the process to a successful conclusion.

"President Trump has been quite clear that he's been continually frustrated with both sides of this conflict, and he wants to see this fighting end. He wants the war to end. We believe we have leverage in negotiating a deal to a peace deal, and we're going to use that leverage, and the President is determined to see this through," she added.

President Putin concluded his meeting with Witkoff in St. Petersburg at 10:00 p.m. Moscow time on April 11. A statement issued by the Kremlin following the talks confirmed that the Russian leader had received the American special envoy and that the meeting had focused on various aspects of the Ukrainian settlement.

The talks, which began at 5:40 p.m. and lasted more than four hours, marked the third round of direct discussions between Putin and Witkoff. The American envoy previously visited Moscow for similar engagements in February and March.

Ahead of his meeting with the Russian president, Witkoff spent the day visiting landmarks in St. Petersburg. He began his itinerary at the Grand Hotel Europe, where he held a meeting with Kirill Dmitriev, President Putin’s special representative for investment and economic cooperation with foreign states, as well as head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF). Later, he visited the Grand Choral Synagogue and toured St. Isaac’s Cathedral. His day concluded at the Yeltsin Presidential Library, located in the Senate and Synod building on Senate Square, where he met with Putin.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy strongly criticized Russia during a visit to his hometown of Kryvyi Rih on April 11, where he paid tribute to victims of a deadly Russian missile strike that took place on April 4. The attack claimed the lives of 19 people, including nine children.

During his visit, Zelenskyy alleged that hundreds of Chinese nationals were fighting alongside Russian forces. He claimed Ukraine had captured two individuals of Chinese nationality and that intelligence indicated at least several hundred more were active in Russia’s military campaign.

Zelenskyy argued that Russia was seeking to prolong the war even at the cost of foreign lives, including those of Chinese citizens. At the memorial site in Kryvyi Rih, he laid flowers in front of photographs of three children killed in the strike — nine-year-old Herman Tripolets and seven-year-olds Arina Samodina and Radyslav Yatsko.

By Tamilla Hasanova