A significant development has surfaced in the Russia-Ukraine war. Vladimir Putin has told Russian forces to hold off from striking Kyiv for the next three days, a window of 72 hours. The order comes as US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrive in Moscow for talks aimed at the Ukraine war.
What the Kremlin said
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin will hold direct talks with Witkoff and Kushner on Saturday. The Kremlin also said it would brief the media once that meeting wraps up. The timing suggests Putin chose to pause strikes on Kyiv ahead of the talks, apparently to keep tensions from complicating the negotiations and to make the diplomatic path smoother.
Trump's envoys land in Moscow
Witkoff and Kushner arrived in Moscow on Saturday. Their goal is to restart efforts to bring an end to Russia's war in Ukraine, a conflict now in its fifth year. At the airport, Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev welcomed the American delegation. A convoy carrying Witkoff, Kushner and Dmitriev was seen moving from Moscow's government airport toward the city.
Dmitriev's continuing role
Kirill Dmitriev is far from a new face in this process. He has taken part in earlier rounds of meetings between Putin and American negotiators, and he stayed in contact with the US side even during pauses in Russia-related diplomacy. That continuity suggests the current round of talks is not a sudden move but the next step in an already running diplomatic channel. The temporary halt on strikes against Kyiv signals that both sides currently want to push the conversation forward in earnest, even if the pause itself lasts only 72 hours.
