US envoys advance Ukraine peace talks as Moscow and Kyiv weigh European participation

Following diplomatic discussions in Abu Dhabi, US presidential envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on November 12, 2026, to advance peace negotiations. The meetings focused on ending the conflict in Ukraine, with the US delegation stressing the necessity of European involvement in future peace architecture. Putin reportedly proposed a joint Russian-Ukrainian humanitarian mission in Kostiantynivka, modeled after a successful civilian evacuation initiative in Oleshky last month. The Kremlin also emphasized that NATO expansion remains a red line for Russia.

After the Moscow summit, Witkoff and Kushner traveled to Dublin to brief Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Both Ukrainian and US officials announced that a new round of tripartite peace talks will take place, with European representation expected to be included. Furthermore, both sides have agreed to a large-scale prisoner exchange, described as potentially the largest since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. While the US and Ukraine push for European participation, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated on November 13 that Moscow has not yet formally accepted the inclusion of European parties in the negotiation framework. President Putin is scheduled to discuss the conflict further with President Donald Trump during the upcoming APEC summit in China.