Zelensky Prepares for Oslo Diplomacy as Rubio Rejects Intelligence-Withholding Claims

Steve Witkoff is expected to join the Oslo discussions by video link, alongside Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and representatives from Finland, the UK, Poland, France and Germany, as well as the EU and NATO.

It remains unclear whether Witkoff will travel to Russia after the Oslo meeting. However, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he hoped a meeting with Trump’s special envoy could be arranged in the near future. Peskov added: “We greatly appreciate the mediation efforts of the American negotiators.”

Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the war with Trump by phone. Shortly afterward, Trump announced that Moscow would immediately begin supplying more than 300,000 tons of diesel to the United States and other markets, bringing US sanctions on Russian diesel exports to an end.

European leaders have expressed concern about recent US statements on Russia. On Monday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz described the latest messaging as presenting “mixed pictures and messages” and said he was trying to persuade the US government that the conflict “is something we have to resolve jointly.”

Merz noted that the US had not been funding Ukraine’s defense since the beginning of 2025, leaving Europe and other countries to shoulder the burden.

“It is a major effort for our budgets and a major contribution from the European Union, but we are doing it and will continue doing so until this terrible war ends,” Merz told Bloomberg TV.

Asked whether Ukraine was a US ally, Vice President JD Vance said in a television interview that Kyiv was “certainly a partner in some ways, but we have some divergent interests from time to time. For example, I think they should stop bombing Russian energy.”

“We do not have a formal alliance with Ukraine, as far as I know,” Vance said. “They are not in NATO, and I do not think they should be. We will work together on some things, but we will also be on opposite sides of some issues.”

Source link