Steve Witkoff is heading to Oslo for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and a cluster of European leaders, with a follow-up trip to Russia on the table where he hopes to sit down with Vladimir Putin himself. The White House special envoy's travel comes as American, Ukrainian and European officials try to turn a week of quiet consultations into something resembling a real peace framework.
According to Axios, the Oslo talks are expected to include Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre along with representatives from the so-called E4 nations — the U.K., France, Germany and Poland — plus officials from the EU and NATO. Jared Kushner, the other lead U.S. envoy, won't be in the room; a U.S. official told the outlet he has the flu and will join the Oslo meeting virtually rather than in person.
Zelenskyy himself confirmed the diplomatic churn two days earlier. “I had a conversation with the American President's envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner,” he said, as reported by Reuters. He added, “Our teams maintain virtually nonstop communication. We are also preparing the next steps in diplomacy.”
A Two-Track Push Toward a Proposal
Per Axios, a U.S. official described the current work as organized around two parallel tracks. The first centers on what's described as a sovereign, secure and prosperous future for Ukraine, including credible security guarantees, European integration for Kyiv, and a comprehensive postwar economic framework addressing the country's financial needs and long-term growth. The second track covers a broader proposal meant for Russia, addressing what's needed to end the war, a new security architecture between Russia and Europe, and opportunities for postwar economic cooperation.
The same U.S. official said Witkoff plans to present ideas developed in consultation with Ukraine and European partners, and that the Oslo sessions build on earlier discussions held at Witkoff's Shell Bay Club in the Miami area. The official characterized the next step as testing whether that work can form the basis for serious negotiations with Russia, while cautioning that discussions remain fluid and substantial work remains.
Zelenskyy, for his part, told reporters he was in talks with the U.S. envoys about arranging a new round of peace meetings as early as that week, according to Bloomberg, which also reported that the U.S. envoys plan to meet with Putin.
No Breakthrough in Past Rounds
This isn't the first time Witkoff and Kushner have shuttled between Moscow and Kyiv in pursuit of a deal. The pair previously held talks with Putin in Moscow before traveling to Kyiv the next day for conversations with Zelenskyy that U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff described as “encouraging” — but no breakthrough emerged, according to Deutsche Welle. Moscow and Kyiv have remained divided over key issues, particularly territorial concessions, the outlet reported.
Ukraine's military intelligence chief, Kyrylo Budanov, has said he does not expect the fighting to end before spring 2027, and he predicted further Russian strategic air strikes over the winter, per the same Deutsche Welle report.
An Oil Deal Tangled Up in the Diplomacy
The negotiations have also acquired an economic dimension that extends well beyond the battlefield. According to The New York Times, talks with Russia about ending the war have expanded to include a multibillion-dollar oil deal tied to Lukoil's global assets, with the transaction contingent on approval from both the U.S. government and the Kremlin. A Carlyle bid for a large share of those assets reached a tentative agreement in January but later stalled over U.S. approval, the Times reported.
Behind the diplomacy sits a personal case that has become part of Witkoff's Russia agenda. His trip is expected to include efforts to secure the release of Stephen Hubbard, a retired American teacher the U.S. says is detained in Russia.
