Talks could resume around 10 November

Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday, 21 October 2026, in talks lasting more than three hours. Kirill Dmitriev took part for the Russian side, and Jared Kushner joined remotely, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. Afterwards, Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov said Putin had told the envoy that Moscow was ready in principle to restart trilateral negotiations with Washington and Kyiv around 10 November, with security as the focus. Ushakov said he could not say how close the sides were to ending the war, but that both were moving in that direction. He also described the proposals presented to Putin by Witkoff, which had been discussed in Oslo by Ukrainian and European representatives, as containing little that was useful for a settlement. Donald Trump said the two sides may never have been as close as they are now.

Hubbard freed after more than four years

Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old retired teacher from Michigan and a US Air Force veteran, was freed on the same day after more than four years in Russian custody. Trump said he had asked Putin during a phone call earlier in October to release him, and said the United States was asked for nothing in return. Hubbard was sentenced in 2024 to nearly seven years in prison in closed proceedings, after being accused of signing a contract with the Ukrainian military. His legal team disputes that he was involved in any military activity. His sister, Patricia Hubbard Fox, said he had been living in Ukraine when Russia invaded and that he suffered beatings and starvation while held. She said he had told her he could not believe it was happening.

“Putin is as evil as they come.”

Republican anger over Witkoff's remarks

During the meeting, Witkoff thanked Putin and called him compassionate for the release. Republican senator Thom Tillis said Witkoff should check the dictionary definition of the word and visit Ukraine to ask the families of children Putin abducted and killed whether they agree. Congressman Don Bacon called the remarks another embarrassment. Senator Dick Durbin said calling a war criminal humanitarian was a disgrace to the tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians killed in the war. Vice President JD Vance defended Witkoff, saying the return of an American hostage to his family mattered far more than what the envoy had said to secure it.

Zelensky backs a trilateral meeting and a freeze

Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine favours holding a trilateral meeting with Russia and the United States as soon as possible, following Witkoff's separate meetings with Kyiv and Moscow. In an interview with Fox News, he said freezing the current front line was in his view the real way to end the war. He said security guarantees from the United States must be part of any agreement, and that any deal should pass through parliament. Zelensky also pointed to around 9.5 million Ukrainians who lost their homes and now live abroad. He noted remaining limitations on Starlink, which he said Marco Rubio had promised would be resolved soon, while intelligence flows already worked.