U.S. envoys in Moscow as Russia and Ukraine vow not to hit capitals during talks

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U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were in Moscow Saturday and expected to head to Kyiv the next day, with Russia and Ukraine vowing not to strike each others’ capitals during talks on ending more than four years of war.

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U.S. President Donald Trump earlier said his son-in-law Kushner and business ally Witkoff were bringing “a proposal to end the war.”

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The envoys are expected to head for their first visit to Kyiv Sunday, in Washington’s latest bid to break a diplomatic stalemate in Europe’s deadliest conflict since the Second World War.

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Both the Kremlin and Kyiv vowed not to strike their main cities during the talks, after months of escalating attacks.

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“The Russian president, the commander-in-chief, has given the order from midnight tonight not to strike Kyiv for three days,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — who had offered a truce during the U.S. visits — later said he had spoken to the U.S. envoys and also promised Kyiv would not strike Moscow.

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“From now through the end of Saturday, as well as on Sunday and Monday, Ukraine is ready to refrain from strikes on Moscow,” Zelensky said on social media.

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The Ukrainian leader said the U.S. officials have “already begun working with the Russian side today.”

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Earlier, he accused Russia of trying to disrupt their visit with overnight strikes on Kyiv’s two airports, as well as on a civilian target in the Dnipro region that killed five people.

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“Clearly, these Russian strikes on the airports are a reaction to the discussions and preparations for the possibility of the U.S. side using an aircraft to travel to Ukraine,” Zelensky said on X.

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It will be the first time that Witkoff and Kushner have visited Kyiv since Trump returned to office last year with a pledge to resolve the conflict.

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Travelling to Kyiv by plane would be a highly unusual move, with Ukrainian airspace closed since 2022 because of the war. Visiting leaders and officials have generally travelled by train.

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The envoys are expected in Kyiv on Sunday, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP, while U.S. outlet Axios reported they would meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday.

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Trump told reporters the envoys would seek to gauge whether progress towards peace was possible.

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Peace efforts have stalled, in part because of Washington’s war with Iran, while Moscow and Kyiv have intensified long-range attacks, driving up civilian casualties to levels not seen since the start of fighting in February 2022.

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“I sent Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, two great negotiators. They’ve done a great job, and we sent them over to see whether or not we can get something done. And there may be a good chance that we’ll do it,” Trump said.