Witkoff also offered tactical guidance on how Putin should raise subject with Trump, audio recording suggests. Plus, the female pilots on Ukraine’s frontline
Good morning.
Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff told a senior Kremlin official last month that achieving peace in Ukraine would require Russia gaining control of Donetsk and potentially a separate territorial exchange, according to a recording of their conversation.
What did Witkoff say? “Now, me to you, I know what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done: Donetsk and maybe a land swap somewhere,” Witkoff told Ushakov during the five-minute conversation, according to a transcript of the recording obtained by Bloomberg. “But I’m saying instead of talking like that, let’s talk more hopefully because I think we’re going to get to a deal here.”
This is a developing story. Follow the liveblog here.
What has changed? It marks a sharp departure from Donald Trump’s narrative to the public every time he has discussed the 21 strikes that have killed more than 80 people, which he has portrayed as an effort to stop overdose deaths.
What have the White House said? A White House official responded that Trump has not been making a legal argument. Still, Trump’s remarks remain the only public reason for why the US is firing missiles – when the legal justification is in fact very different.
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Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/26/first-thing-trump-envoy-witkoff-reportedly-advised-kremlin-official-on-ukraine-peace-deal
Author : Nicola Slawson
Publish date : 2025-11-26 14:06:00
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