Russia Agrees in Principle to Resume Ukraine Talks Around Nov. 10 as Missiles Hit Kyiv

Russia said Wednesday it was "ready in principle" to resume three-way peace talks with Ukraine and the United States, hours before a new missile attack on Kyiv injured six people, the BBC reported.

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday, a day after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the leaders of Norway and Finland in Oslo. Jared Kushner took part by video link. Putin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters a new round could be held around Nov. 10 in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, and stressed that talks must focus on "building a security system for Russia and Ukraine after the end of the conflict," according to the BBC. The Kremlin published Ushakov's commentary on its website.

Three-way talks were paused in February, after which Russia stepped up attacks as Ukraine ran low on Western-supplied interceptors, the BBC reported. Russia blamed last month's Ukrainian strikes during its general elections for disrupting the process. Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and Moscow controls about 20 percent of Ukrainian territory.

It is not clear what proposals Witkoff brought. Zelensky said after the Oslo talks that "strong" security guarantees for Ukraine and energy ceasefire proposals had been discussed; Ushakov said those ideas were not very "useful," according to the BBC. Ushakov also said Putin told Witkoff that Russian troops were advancing everywhere along the front line and had a "strategic initiative," a claim Ukraine and its European allies dispute, pointing to a virtual stalemate.

Zelensky told Fox News on Wednesday that he would accept a deal freezing the war along the current front line. "We call it 'ceasefire' or 'stop killings' like President Trump called it. Freeze and stop. And of course this is minimum what we need from Russia today," he said, adding that security guarantees could be discussed afterward, the BBC reported.

Witkoff called the talks "constructive." Kushner said, "There is still hard work ahead, but we have a real opportunity to move beyond this war and build a framework for lasting peace, security, and prosperity for generations to come." President Donald Trump said Wednesday that a settlement was "maybe now the closest we've been," according to the BBC.

Overnight, several houses in Kyiv were hit, and six people were injured, Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said, according to the BBC.

Before the meeting, Russia released Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old American former teacher who had been sentenced to nearly seven years for allegedly fighting on behalf of Ukraine, the BBC reported. Trump said Hubbard was "on his way back home" and that "there was no 'swap' necessary." Witkoff called Putin a "humanitarian" for agreeing to the release. Asked whether he agreed with that description, Vice President JD Vance said, "I agree with Steve Witkoff saying something nice to a person who just released an American hostage," adding that he cared "much less about what Steve said than about the fact that he is bringing an American hostage home to his family."

The diplomacy comes amid tension between Kyiv and Washington. Trump has said it is time for Ukraine to get a new president and "for somebody else to negotiate on behalf of Ukraine," and has blamed Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries for rising fuel prices, the BBC reported. He drew criticism from Democrats and some Republicans after lifting sanctions to allow Russia to release diesel to the global market, weeks after signing legislation authorizing new sanctions and tariffs on buyers of Russian oil and gas.

Kyiv last week accused Washington of withholding intelligence used to warn Ukrainians about incoming Russian ballistic missiles, resulting in civilian deaths; Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the accusations "scandalous," and Zelensky said after the Oslo talks that intelligence sharing "works now," according to the BBC. Ukraine's military has also complained of speed restrictions on the Starlink satellite network that limited drone operations; U.S. officials have denied requesting a slowdown, and a bipartisan group of senators has called for an urgent investigation.

Reuters reported that Russia said it was willing in principle to join new talks in November. The BBC's Russia editor wrote that Putin does not feel under pressure to end the war.