U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff landed in Moscow on Wednesday for talks that could include President Vladimir Putin, as Washington warns it will impose fresh sanctions if Russia fails to accept a Ukraine ceasefire by Friday.
Witkoff was met at Vnukovo airport by Kremlin investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, a Russian official told Reuters. The Kremlin has “not ruled out” a meeting between the U.S. envoy and Putin, raising the stakes of a last-minute bid to halt the 3½-year war.
President Donald Trump said last week that Moscow must agree to a ceasefire or face new U.S. measures, including heavy tariffs on countries buying Russian oil—chiefly India and China. “This visit is a final attempt to find a face-saving solution for both sides,” Austrian analyst Gerhard Mangott said in a telephone interview.
Three sources close to the Kremlin told Reuters that Putin is unlikely to accept the ultimatum, believing Russian forces hold the battlefield advantage and that additional sanctions will do little damage after successive rounds of penalties.
Russian officials insist they are ready for a ceasefire only under conditions long set out by Moscow, while the White House says any deal must respect Ukraine’s sovereignty. Trump has given no details of the tariffs he threatens to impose if Friday’s deadline passes without agreement.
The envoy’s arrival comes as Western capitals debate how far to tighten economic pressure on Russia, whose oil exports still generate more than $400 billion (about £310 billion) in annual revenue, according to the International Energy Agency.
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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi hosted Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn and Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow in Yunnan province on Sunday, following a ceasefire that ended nearly three weeks of clashes along the Cambodia-Thailand border.
More than 1,200 people have been newly displaced in Sudan’s South and North Kordofan states due to escalating insecurity, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) reported on Sunday.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that negotiations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to end the Russia-Ukraine war are “in the final stages,” with security guarantees nearly complete and a 20-point peace plan largely agreed.
Torrential rainfall across southern and eastern Spain over the weekend has left one person dead and two others missing, authorities said on Sunday evening, as overflowing riverbeds swept away vehicles and officials urged residents to stay indoors.
New York placed the state under emergency measures on Friday as a powerful winter storm brought the heaviest snowfall since 2022, disrupting travel across the north-east of the United States.
A 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck offshore near Taiwan’s north-eastern county of Yilan late on Saturday, shaking buildings across the island, including in the capital Taipei, authorities said.
Brigitte Bardot, the French actress whose barefoot mambo in And God Created Woman propelled her to international fame and reshaped female sexuality on screen, has died at the age of 91, her foundation said on Sunday.
Iran is engaged in a “comprehensive war” with the United States, Israel, and Europe, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated on Saturday.
Japan’s tourism sector has experienced a slowdown after China’s government advised its citizens to reconsider travel to Japan, following remarks by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi regarding Taiwan.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi hosted Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn and Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow in Yunnan province on Sunday, following a ceasefire that ended nearly three weeks of clashes along the Cambodia-Thailand border.
More than 1,200 people have been newly displaced in Sudan’s South and North Kordofan states due to escalating insecurity, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) reported on Sunday.
Torrential rainfall across southern and eastern Spain over the weekend has left one person dead and two others missing, authorities said on Sunday evening, as overflowing riverbeds swept away vehicles and officials urged residents to stay indoors.
Türkiye on Sunday denied reports that a Turkish Airlines passenger flight diverted from Libya due to fears of retaliation following a Libyan military delegation plane crash near Ankara.
Gaziantep’s Panorama 25 December Museum, which commemorates the city’s resistance during Türkiye’s War of Independence, continues to attract strong public interest, with nearly 1.5 million visitors recorded in the five years since it opened.
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