 "Zelenskyy accuses US envoy Steve Witkoff of 'spreading Russian narratives' over remarks on occupied territories")
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday (April 17) accused the US peace envoy Steve Witkoff of “spreading Russian narratives” while talking to reporters.
“I believe that Mr Witkoff has taken on the strategy of the Russian side. I think it is very dangerous, because he is consciously or unconsciously, I don’t know, spreading Russian narratives,” Zelenskyy said, after Witkoff suggested that a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine depended on the status of territories currently occupied by Russian forces.
“This peace deal is about these so-called five territories,” Witkoff said in comments for Fox News earlier this week. “But there’s so much more to it. I think we might be on the verge of something that would be very important for the world at large.”
Key allies of Kyiv met with top US officials in Paris earlier in the day, as European leaders pushed to revive discussions around a possible ceasefire in Ukraine. The diplomatic effort comes amid ongoing frustration from President Donald Trump, whose attempts to bring an end to the three-year conflict have so far made little headway. Trump has voiced particular concern over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s reluctance to agree to a full and unconditional truce.
The Paris meeting brought together US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, US envoy Steve Witkoff, and French President Emmanuel Macron. The lunchtime talks at Macron’s palace followed a recent meeting between Witkoff and Putin, signalling an intensifying diplomatic effort to break the deadlock.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsPutin received Witkoff in the former imperial capital of St. Petersburg on Friday and they spoke for close to five hours. Putin’s foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, and investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev were also in the room.
On Thursday, Zelenskyy called on allied nations gathered in Paris to intensify pressure on Russia to accept a ceasefire. His plea came amid ongoing Russian attacks, which have continued despite multiple rounds of diplomatic outreach.
Ukrainian officials reported that Russian drone strikes and shelling killed at least 10 people on Thursday alone. This follows a deadly strike earlier in the week in the northeastern city of Sumy, where at least 35 people lost their lives.
Macron has emerged as a central figure in coordinating Europe’s response to the war, both in terms of military support during the ongoing conflict and planning for Ukraine’s future reconstruction.
(With inputs from agencies)
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