Donald Trump’s envoy praises Russian leader in visit to St. Petersburg.
Steve Witkoff, the United States’ special envoy, praised Russian ruler Vladimir Putin during face-to-face talks in St. Petersburg, calling him “a humanitarian.”
“You talk so much about my president, President Trump, being a humanitarian. You are a humanitarian also, sir, and I salute that, I commend you, and I thank you again,” Witkoff said Wednesday in a Russian state media video clip posted on social media.
Witkoff’s visit is the latest U.S. attempt to bring Moscow and Kyiv to the negotiating table, four-and-a-half years after the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The American envoy met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Oslo on Tuesday, and is expected to propose trilateral talks between the two leaders and U.S. President Donald Trump.
Speaking later on Wednesday, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance said: “I agree with Steve Witkoff saying something nice to a person who just released an American hostage,” referring to the release of Stephen Hubbard, a retired teacher who had been detained by Russia since 2022.
“Whether you agree with the underlying sentiment or not, Steve Witkoff is a diplomat. His job is to go over there and get a job done,” he added. “I care much less about what Steve said than about the fact that he is bringing an American hostage home to his family.”
Russia’s strikes on Kyiv and Kharkiv continued overnight, killing three people, local mayors reported.
Putin’s assault on Ukraine killed 328 civilians in September alone, according to the United Nations, while Kremlin forces bombard energy infrastructure across the country heading into winter.
The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin in 2023 over the forced transfer of children to Russia after the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine began.
This article has been updated with comments from J.D. Vance.