US Envoys Witkoff and Kushner Hold 3-Hour Talks With Putin in Moscow as Russia Orders 72-Hour Pause on Kyiv Strikes

US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and presidential adviser Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow on September 5 and held more than three hours of talks with President Vladimir Putin, followed by dinner, in an effort to revive Ukraine peace negotiations that had been frozen for nearly eight months. Ahead of the visit, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Putin ordered a 72-hour pause on strikes against Kyiv starting at midnight, tying it to preparations for the envoys' trip; Ukraine reciprocated with a matching pause on long-range strikes against Moscow. Trump and Ukrainian officials indicated the envoys carried a renewed ceasefire proposal. No immediate details of the talks' outcome were announced, though Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov later called them 'useful.' Witkoff and Kushner were scheduled to travel to Kyiv the next day to meet Ukrainian officials.