Witkoff, Kushner to meet Ukrainians for talks on the war, says US source

By Steve Holland

WASHINGTON, Oct 8 (Reuters) – US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will meet Ukrainian representatives on Friday in Miami to discuss new ideas and try to produce a unified proposal for resolving the war in Ukraine, an American source familiar with the plan said on Thursday.

Earlier on Thursday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the conflict was at a dangerous stalemate. President Donald Trump this week said he planned to talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone soon.

Trump, whose efforts to resolve the conflict have so far not succeeded, has been trying to arrange trilateral talks between Russia, the US and Ukraine.

The source said Witkoff and Kushner would hold a working session with the Ukrainians to discuss “new ideas and proposals that American negotiators began developing with the Russians and Ukrainians during their recent visit to the region”.

The meeting will include representatives from the White House National Security Council and US Treasury Department, the source said. Ukraine’s chief of staff Kyrylo Budanov, intelligence chief Rustem Umerov, and top negotiator David Arakhamia will represent Kyiv.

The American negotiators also invited national security advisors from the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, as well as officials from NATO and the European Union.

They are expected to discuss proposals for security guarantees for Ukraine, a post-war prosperity plan, and other aspects of the conflict, the source said.

The source said the Europeans had told the United States of their frustration with high energy costs and other major financial impacts of the conflict.

“It will be a tough winter if the war does not stop. So, the United States is trying to mediate with the sides with the goal of creating a unified proposal,” the source said.

(Reporting by Steve Holland; editing by Michelle Nichols and David Ljunggren)