US envoy meets Putin in Kremlin to push Ukraine ceasefire deal

US envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Friday to push for a ceasefire in Ukraine, just a day after Donald Trump urged Putin to halt his offensive.

Witkoff, a billionaire real estate investor and key figure in Trump’s mediation efforts, has now met Putin three times since Trump returned to office in January.

Trump has threatened to abandon peace talks if Russia doesn’t move toward a deal, while Ukraine has rejected US suggestions to freeze front lines and accept Russian control of Crimea.

The meeting came as tensions escalated following deadly Russian strikes on Kyiv and the killing of a senior Russian general in a car bombing near Moscow.

Read more: VIDEO: Russian general killed in car explosion near Moscow