Trump's special envoys decide not to go to Kyiv due to deadlock in peace talks with russia - media

Special envoys to US President Donald Trump — Steve Whitcoff and Jared Kushner — have canceled their trip to Kyiv, which had been scheduled for April.

It was reported by the Kyiv Independent website, citing informed sources.

The main reason, according to the publication’s sources, is the lack of progress in peace talks between russia and Ukraine: the American side sees no point in a visit that could only highlight the deadlock rather than break the impasse.

“The Russians are insisting that they want the entire Donbas; our position is: let's come up with a decent solution. So for now, it's unclear why (Trump's envoys) should come all this way just to hear the same thing again,” explained a Ukrainian official on condition of anonymity.

Another reason for canceling the trip was the US war with Iran, which has left Witkoff and Kushner completely absorbed in the Middle East settlement. Additionally, according to the publication’s sources, Witkoff finds it “difficult” to travel by train, and there is currently no way to fly to Kyiv.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had publicly expressed disappointment that Trump’s representatives had visited moscow multiple times but had never come to Kyiv.

This time, as reported by the Ukrainian News agency, according to the initial plan, Witkoff and Kushner were supposed to first meet with Zelenskyy and then travel to the russian capital for talks with vladimir putin.

An unnamed US official, in turn, said that the visit is still under discussion but has not yet been “confirmed.” At the same time, communication between Kyiv and Washington has not been interrupted, and officials continue to coordinate actions through other channels, the Ukrainian source added. He also noted that Kyiv is seeking “new formats” for cooperation with the US.