Witkoff Meets Putin and Zelenskyy: American Prisoner Freed, Zelenskyy Open to Freezing Conflict

President Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff met with both Ukrainian President Zelenskyy and Russian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this week, holding "productive" talks with Zelenskyy and securing the release of an American prisoner from Russia.

Ukraine: Witkoff met Zelenskyy in Norway on Tuesday, alongside Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, whose countries jointly facilitated the meeting. Støre told reporters the talks were "good and constructive," and Stubb said the two sides "made genuine progress." Witkoff said they were "productive." Zelenskyy said the talks were "very constructive."

Russia: On Wednesday, Witkoff met Putin for three hours in St. Petersburg, and Witkoff presented Putin with an updated peace proposal. Of the Ukraine talks, Witkoff told Putin, "I would like to say that there is progress, and I will update you on this. I hope that we have truly laid the groundwork for a successful end to hostilities in this Ukrainian-Russian conflict." Putin reportedly thanked Trump for his efforts to end the conflict and First Lady Melania for her humanitarian efforts in Ukraine. He also reportedly expressed interest in further energy and fertilizer trade between the US and Russia and offered to assist in mediating a ceasefire in Iran, calling the Islamic Republic a "special, trusting" partner. Witkoff reportedly asked Putin to consider holding a trilateral meeting with the US and Ukraine, something Zelenskyy has previously pushed for.

Prisoner Release: Most notably, the talk yielded the release of Stephen James Hubbard, a former American teacher and military veteran who was detained while living in Izium, Ukraine, when Russia invaded in 2022. In October 2024, a Moscow court sentenced him to nearly seven years in prison on mercenary charges. CNN (Lean Left bias) highlighted the "many other Americans" still imprisoned in Russia for various reasons, framing all of them as wrongfully detained.

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Sticking Point: Russia currently controls all of Luhansk and majority shares of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts. In April 2024, Putin said Russia would accept a ceasefire if Ukraine withdrew forces from all four territories. In April 2025, The Guardian (Left) claimed – based on anonymous sourcing – that Putin said he was ready to accept a US peace plan in which the current lines of control were frozen in exchange for other concessions, including recognition of Crimea as Russia and sanctions relief.

New Development: Zelenskyy spoke with Fox News (Right) host Brian Kilmeade on Wednesday shortly after the Witkoff-Putin meeting ended. He said that because Russia hasn't had "success… on the battlefield" so far in 2026, he would accept freezing the conflict along the lines of battle as the first step towards diplomacy and developing a peace plan. He added, "I think this is a real way to end this war."

What's Next?: Putin has reportedly proposed a trilateral meeting between the leaders of the US, Russia, and China, though Zelenskyy told Kilmeade Ukraine would not accept this.

For Context: The meetings come days after Ukraine reported losing access to Starlink internet services – something SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said he did not order and could have been an act by the US federal government. Zelenskyy also claimed the US briefly stopped sharing intelligence with it, though the US denied this. Before this, AllSides observed split reporting from major mainstream outlets on whether the US had threatened Ukraine with cutting off its intelligence after it defied President Trump's request to stop bombing Russian oil refineries. The strikes have come into focus as President Trump recently struck a diesel deal with Russia aimed at lowering prices globally and has lifted sanctions on the country.

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Bias Notes: Some outlets across the spectrum showed bits of bias in their stories about the meetings and the prisoner release. While CNN listed other Americans still imprisoned, Fox framed the move as a triumph for the Trump administration, elevating long direct quotes from Trump himself. Associated Press (Lean Left) prominently wrote: "Russia and Ukraine are still far apart in their terms for a settlement."

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