US envoy to meet Putin in Moscow – DW – 12/02/2025

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Ireland late Monday for his first official visit to the country.

On Tuesday, Zelenskyy will be meeting Ireland’s new president, Catherine Connolly, before sitting down with Ireland’s taoiseach (prime minister) Micheal Martin for bilateral talks.

The Ukrainian leader will launch the Ireland-Ukraine Economic Forum and later address the Irish parliament at Leinster House.

Martin, who met Zelenskyy upon his arrival, said the visit comes at a “critical time” for Kyiv, and reiterated Ireland’s “unswerving commitment to standing with the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes.”

The visit follows Zelenskyy’s meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris a day earlier.

Ireland has been a staunch ally of Ukraine’s since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, offering some 120,000 Ukrainians a safe haven.

President Trump’s special envoy for peace missions, Steve Witkoff, will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss the Trump administration’s proposal to end the war in Ukraine.

The meeting is expected to address borders, security guarantees, frozen Russian assets, and potential US-Russian investment projects.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Putin would receive Witkoff, whose role has been under the scanner after reports emerged that he advised a senior Kremlin aide on how to present a Ukraine peace plan to US President Donald Trump.

“I think the administration feels very optimistic,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Monday.

The Moscow talks follow Sunday’s meeting between Ukrainian and US negotiators, with both delegations having said the talks were “productive.”

Kyiv and Washington are reworking the US proposal, criticized for initially favoring Russian positions.  

Plus, European leaders remained engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity, with French President Emmanuel Macron having met Zelenskyy on Monday.

Macron and Zelenskyy also spoke with Witkoff ahead of the Moscow meeting.

Welcome to our coverage of Russia’s war in Ukraine on Tuesday morning, with negotiations to end the war in Ukraine to take place in Moscow this afternoon.

The US-Russia talks come after US and Ukrainian officials discussed the plan in Florida over the weekend.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to Paris on Monday to discuss the plan with European allies.

Zelenskyy then said the proposal “looks better” than the initial one that was drafted by the US and was roundly criticized because it was seen as having heavily favored Russia.

Also on Monday, Russian forces claimed to have captured the frontline Ukrainian towns of Pokrovsk and Vovchansk. But there is no confirmation yet.