President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on the evening of 7 August that security advisers from Ukraine and its partners held discussions about ending the war.
“Our team just reported to me that the security advisers held a fairly long conversation, very detailed. There was a significant composition of participants in the conversation. This is important. Thank you all for your work, for the genuine desire to stop the killings and ensure lasting peace,” Zelenskyy wrote.
According to the president, the advisers agreed during the call to continue their work on 8 August. “There is still a lot of work to be done,” he said.
American media outlet Axios, citing two informed sources, reported that the video conference included US special envoy Steve Witkoff and officials from Ukraine, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, and Britain.
According to the sources, Witkoff conducted the conference to inform partners about his 6 August meeting with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and discuss next steps, including possible negotiations between Trump and Putin. Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne also reported Witkoff’s participation, citing an informed source.
The briefing comes as President Trump has shifted toward discussing a potential summit with Putin after initially moving toward tougher sanctions on Russia. Trump held a call on 6 August with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders, telling them about the possibility of a meeting between him and Putin, followed by a trilateral summit including Zelenskyy.
That call left confusion in Kyiv and other European capitals, with officials uncertain whether US policy was changing or whether sanctions would still be announced 8 August as Trump had planned.
ABC News, citing an unnamed White House official, reported that a possible meeting between Trump and Putin has not yet been agreed upon, nor has a location for such negotiations been determined, despite earlier claims by the Russian side.
The official noted that for negotiations with Trump to take place, Putin must meet with President Zelenskyy first.
Ukraine’s leader said that Russia fears US sanctions that Trump promised to impose if Russia does not agree to peace with Ukraine by 8 August.
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