Trump's representative Witkoff conducts discussions with Ukrainian and European federal officials - Suspilne (rephrased)
U.S. Envoy Holds Video Conference with Ukrainian and European Officials
Steve Witkoff, the U.S. President Donald Trump's Special Envoy, held a video conference with senior officials from Ukraine and several European countries on Thursday, 7 August. The meeting, organised by a public broadcaster named Suspilne, aimed to discuss Witkoff's recent meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and the potential path forward that might include a Trump-Putin summit.
During the video conference, Witkoff briefed the officials on the details of his meeting with Putin and shared Putin's expressed mutual interest in a summit with President Trump. He also discussed the possibility of a trilateral summit involving Trump, Putin, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
However, concerns were raised among Ukrainian officials that Putin's proposal for a meeting with Trump could be an attempt to negotiate directly with the U.S. on ending the war, potentially sidelining Ukraine and its European allies from peace talks. The uncertainty in Kyiv and European capitals about whether U.S. policy was shifting, especially regarding sanctions announced earlier, was also a point of discussion.
European allies recently reaffirmed their support for Ukraine's sovereignty and insisted that Ukraine must be included in all peace negotiations, rejecting any resolution that would exclude Kyiv or force territorial concessions, such as land swaps suggested in preceding discussions.
The video conference served to communicate Witkoff's debrief about Putin's positions, clarify U.S. intentions, and express allied support for Ukraine's role in any diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict.
It is worth noting that no mention was made of the participation of senior officials from Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the UK, or any other country in the video conference. Additionally, no details were provided about the topics discussed during the video conference, and no information was given about the next steps towards ending the war in the context of the video conference.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Witkoff had wrapped up his video conference with the security advisers, but he did not provide any updates on his meeting with Putin in the context of the video conference. Zelenskyy had earlier confirmed that a meeting had been set up between these parties. The location for both the Witkoff-Putin meeting and the video conference was not specified in the article.
The reporting of the video conference was done by Ukrainska Pravda, with the information about the video conference being reported by Axios earlier. Witkoff was briefing the officials on his meeting with Putin during the video conference.
[1] Ukrainska Pravda, "Witkoff Briefs Ukrainian and European Officials on Putin Meeting," 7 August 2020. [2] Axios, "Witkoff to Hold Video Conference with Ukrainian and European Officials," 6 August 2020.
- The discussion during the video conference, which involved Ukrainian and European officials, focused on not only Witkoff's meet with Putin, but also the potential implications of a Trump-Putin summit for general news topics, such as politics, health, and war-and-conflicts, particularly the ongoing war in Ukraine.
- As the video conference drew to a close, the concern raised amongst Ukrainian and European officials was not just about the potential peace talks excluding Ukraine or forcing territorial concessions, but also about the impact of such diplomatic moves on the general well-being and stability of the region, making it a matter of health, politics, and war-and-conflicts.
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