Trump Envoy Meets Putin

President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Russia Friday morning to push for peace as Ukraine was hit with another series of deadly airstrikes overnight and a top Russian general was assassinated in a car bombing near Moscow.

Witkoff’s arrival comes after Trump said on Thursday that he was “not happy” with Russian strikes against Ukraine and urged President Vladimir Putin to stop the attacks. After those comments, Ukraine was hit with another wave of drone attacks, and Russian Lt. Gen. Yaroslav Moskalik, a high-level military official, was killed in a car bombing in Balashikha.

Witkoff arrived in Moscow on Friday morning, where he met with Putin and other Russian officials. His trip comes one day after the Trump administration urged both sides to accept the terms the United States had proposed to end the war.

“This war is endable. Both sides just have to agree to it. We’ve shown them a pathway forward. We’ve discussed those ideas,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday. “It was a good meeting yesterday. There will be good meetings over the weekend. We’ve shown them the finish line. We need both of them to say yes.”

“What happened (Wednesday) night with those missile strikes should remind everybody of why this war needs to end,” the Secretary of State continued. “It’s horrible that those missiles landed. It’s even worse … that people were alive yesterday that are not alive today because this war continues.”

Ukrainian officials said Friday that another Russian drone attack overnight in southeastern Ukraine had killed at least three people, including a 76-year-old woman and a child, and injured 10 more. Ukraine reported that five different regions had been hit by 103 Shahed and decoy drones.

That came after attacks on Thursday in Kyiv, where Ukrainian officials reported that at least 12 people were killed and another 87 wounded. Trump called out Putin for those attacks, saying that it was hurting peace negotiations.

“I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV. Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform. “Lets get the Peace Deal DONE!”

Trump has also expressed frustration with Zelensky, accusing him of making “inflammatory statements” that are not helping negotiations.

“He can have Peace or, he can fight for another three years before losing the whole Country,” Trump said Wednesday.

“I have nothing to do with Russia, but have much to do with wanting to save, on average, five thousand Russian and Ukrainian soldiers a week, who are dying for no reason whatsoever.”