Russian President Vladimir Putin has sent “additional signals” to US counterpart Donald Trump through his special envoy Steve Witkoff, the Kremlin has said.
Speaking on a conference call with reporters Friday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed Putin met Witkoff late Thursday night. “Additional information (about the US-Ukraine talks in Saudi Arabia) was provided to the Russian side. Putin also passed information and additional signals to President Trump through Witkoff,” he said.
The meeting lasted several hours and stretched into early Friday morning, two Trump administration officials told CNN.
Witkoff left Russia shortly after the meeting wrapped and traveled to Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, one of the sources said.
According to Peskov, “there are, of course, grounds for cautious optimism,” regarding a potential resolution to the conflict in Ukraine. He added that Putin had expressed solidarity with Trump’s position but also raised some questions that “need to be addressed together” and said that “much remains to be done.”
The exact time for a potential call between the Russian and US presidents has not yet been determined, but there is a mutual understanding between both sides on the need for a direct conversation, according to the Kremlin.
Peskov denied reports that Russia requested the removal of Russia-Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg from the US negotiating team due to his alleged pro-Ukrainian stance.
“We believe any relationship should be built on the basis of mutual respect, and of course, we will not interfere in the Americans’ internal decisions on appointments,” he said.
CNN’s Alayna Treene contributed reporting to this post.
