Ukrainian Delegation Heads to U.S. for Peace Talks with Witkoff and Kushner
A high-level Ukrainian delegation has departed for the United States to discuss the peace proposal being advanced by U.S. President Donald Trump.
The Gaze reports this, referring to Bloomberg, citing insider sources familiar with the preparations.
According to the publication, the delegation includes Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Rustem Umerov and First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Serhiy Kyslytsia.
In the coming days, the officials are expected to hold a closed-door meeting in Florida with Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, as well as the former President’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, who has become increasingly involved in diplomatic channels surrounding the conflict.
Bloomberg notes that Witkoff is set to lead the American delegation in separate talks with Russian officials next week.
The outlet also refers to a recording reviewed by its journalists, indicating that Witkoff held a phone call last month with a senior Kremlin official, during which he allegedly suggested joint work on a potential framework for Ukraine.
The revelation fueled significant discussion in political circles, given persistent questions about the transparency and direction of U.S. back-channel engagement.
Later updates suggest that Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine’s military intelligence, is also en route to the United States.
The Economist correspondent Oliver Carroll reported that Budanov could assume leadership of the Ukrainian negotiation team.
“Talks appear to be continuing. Trump does not plan to let the Ukrainian issue impede reaching an imbalanced peace,” Carroll wrote, citing sources close to the process.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy previously announced that the Ukrainian side at next week’s negotiations will include the Chief of the General Staff Andriy Hnatov, representatives from the Foreign Ministry, NSDC Secretary Umerov, and Ukrainian intelligence officials. Until recently, the delegation was led by Andriy Yermak, who resigned as head of the Presidential Office on November 28.
As The Gaze reported earlier, a leaked phone call published by Bloomberg shows U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff advising a top Kremlin official on how Russian President Vladimir Putin should lobby Trump over a controversial peace plan for Ukraine.
Read the full analysis on The Gaze: What the Witkoff Scandal Means for the Peace Negotiations