Putin Agrees to Rejoin Ukraine Peace Talks with U.S.

The path to ending the conflict in Ukraine may be opening up again, though the situation remains tense. Russia has signaled a willingness to resume three-way negotiations with the United States and Ukraine next month, potentially restarting direct dialogue that has been stalled since February. This development comes as Washington continues to push for a resolution to the fighting, while violence on the ground has persisted. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has voiced support for Washington's push to restart talks swiftly.

Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov stated that President Vladimir Putin agreed to the proposal to restart the talks after Nov. 10. He explained that the focus would be on building a security system for Russia and Ukraine once the conflict ends. This announcement followed a three-hour discussion in St. Petersburg between Putin and U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff.

The meeting in St. Petersburg included Putin's foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov, and presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev. Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also joined the discussion via video link. According to Ushakov, the conversation covered large-scale joint economic projects that offer significant prospects for cooperation between Russia and the United States.

The meeting followed a series of events. U.S. President Donald Trump has recently been increasing pressure on Ukraine to reach an agreement with Russia. Trump told reporters that the United States wants Zelenskyy to make a deal and that he has given a lot to Ukraine without getting anything back. He warned that if a deal is not reached, it will be a very bad thing. Zelenskyy, for his part, expressed support for the push from Washington to restart talks.

Prior to the St. Petersburg meeting, Steve Witkoff had traveled to Oslo to meet with Zelenskyy and several European leaders. The Kremlin official commented on the proposals that came from the Oslo meeting, stating they contained little of real value in the context of resolving the crisis. He later told Russian state TV that while Moscow is not fully satisfied with the proposals, they are a step in the right direction.

This potential for renewed dialogue represents an attempt to find common ground after significant setbacks. Representatives from Russia, Ukraine, and the United States held three rounds of negotiations earlier this year. These talks took place in Abu Dhabi in January and February, followed by another meeting in Geneva. However, little progress was reported beyond exchanges of prisoners of war, as both Moscow and Kyiv maintained their longstanding basic demands.

The conversation in St. Petersburg also touched on other topics. Putin said he was ready to consider prospects for restoring U.S. and Russian economic ties. He also stated he was prepared to discuss the conflict with Iran, adding that Moscow stands ready to use its relationship with Tehran to help bring peace.

Meanwhile, the fighting continued. Russian attacks overnight in Kyiv resulted in three people dead and 12 wounded, according to the city's military administration. Early Wednesday, energy facilities were targeted in Kyiv and three other cities. Outside the eastern city of Kharkiv, two people died and 11 others were wounded when drones exploded in a residential area.

Norway's prime minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, met with Steve Witkoff in Oslo after his trip to Russia. He told a broadcaster that he thinks it may be a phase now where the Russians are also looking for opportunities for diplomacy. He also suggested that new talks were likely to happen in mid-November. Støre was asked if Zelenskyy could accept a border running along the current front line, to which he responded that Ukraine will never formally accept it but questioned whether they can live with it.