What Did Witkoff Tell Putin After Meeting Zelensky?

Steve Witkoff, President Trump’s special envoy, sat down with Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday, one day after meeting Volodymyr Zelensky in Oslo. The Kremlin leader opened the talks with offers of fertilizer, diesel and a role on Iran. The Ukrainian president, meanwhile, told Fox News he would accept a deal that keeps the war where it stands.

The site’s earlier piece on the Oslo talks asked what Witkoff would tell Putin. This one sets out what each side said once he arrived.

Witkoff met Zelensky on Tuesday and Putin on Wednesday. Putin’s opening remarks, as Anadolu reported them, were about trade and Iran. Zelensky told Fox News he accepts a freeze along the current front line. No Russian reply to that had been reported by Wednesday afternoon.

On Tuesday, Zelensky held talks in Oslo with Witkoff, with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Finnish President Alexander Stubb taking part, Ukrinform reported. On Wednesday morning he wrote on Facebook: “We continue to coordinate with Jonas Gahr Støre on our next steps toward a just peace.” He added: “Much depends on whether the American side will hear anything new from Russia today.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to reporters in Mumbai, called the Zelensky and Witkoff meeting positive and said it held no surprises. Witkoff would take the ideas to Russia, he said: “let’s see if we can make some progress,” according to Ukrinform. Rubio also denied that Washington had asked for changes to Ukraine’s access to SpaceX’s Starlink, saying use of the equipment is governed by a private commercial contract.

Witkoff landed at Pulkovo-3 airport and met Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s special envoy, before the talks began at the Konstantinovsky Palace, Ukrinform reported. During the meeting Putin announced the release of Stephen Hubbard, an American a Moscow court sentenced in 2024 to six years and ten months in prison. Putin said Hubbard was already at Pulkovo Airport.

In his opening remarks, as Anadolu Agency reported them, Putin said Russia wants to revive commercial relations with the United States and can send more fertilizer to the American market. He said diesel prices fell by 5 to 6 percent after the Russia and US diesel supply agreement. He asked for Trump’s assessment of Iran and said Russia is willing to help resolve that conflict. Trump had stressed in their latest call that the war in Ukraine must end to stop further deaths, Putin said.

Witkoff called Tuesday’s Oslo talks productive, per Anadolu. “There is substantial groundwork in place to move toward ending the conflict in Ukraine,” he said. He thanked Putin on Trump’s behalf for the diesel agreement and said he hoped Putin would consider resuming three-way talks among Russia, the United States and Ukraine, where technical issues could be discussed.

In an interview with Fox News, Interfax-Ukraine reported on Wednesday, Zelensky said Ukraine would agree to a deal that freezes the war along the current front line. A ceasefire should be the minimum demand on Russia, he said, and after one Ukraine would turn to Trump and European partners for security guarantees. “The most important thing is peace, and peace backed by security,” he said.

Zelensky wrote on Wednesday morning that much depends on whether Washington hears “anything new from Russia.” Putin’s opening to Witkoff, as Anadolu reported it, covered fertilizer, diesel prices and Iran.

The diesel agreement is contested in Kyiv. Nicole Wiley wrote in War on the Rocks on 19 October, in a review of Ukrainian reactions, that Trump had lifted the ban on Russian diesel trade while Russia escalated strikes on civilians. She quoted the Ukrainian commentator Yuriy Lutsenko, who proposed “for every strike on a civilian target, a strike on one of Russia’s rust-bucket tankers.” On Wednesday Putin cited the agreement as the reason diesel prices had fallen.

On 19 October, Devdiscourse reported that Dmitry Peskov said the subject of a hypothetical Putin, Trump and Xi meeting “was indeed raised” but “no specific proposals or agreements were discussed or put forward by anyone.” Peskov added: “a final settlement is impossible without the participation of someone in Kyiv who is prepared to take responsibility.” Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, replied on X that a Russia, China and US leaders’ meeting “would do only the opposite” of shortening the war, while a Ukraine, Russia and US meeting could. Witkoff on Wednesday asked Putin for the second format. The site covered the first in an earlier piece.

The first marker is Putin’s answer on the three-way format Witkoff asked for. The second is any public Russian reply to Zelensky’s freeze position. The third is a Kremlin or White House account of the meeting itself. None of the reports on Wednesday had scheduled a Trump call with Putin or Zelensky.