Russia-USA peace talks: Veteran diplomats lead negotiations
Russia and the USA are preparing for talks to end the war in Ukraine. According to Bloomberg, close collaborators of Putin with many years of diplomatic experience will represent the Russian side.
The Russian team will include Yuri Ushakov. The 77-year-old has been advising Putin on foreign affairs for over a decade and was formerly the Russian ambassador to the USA.
Beside him will be 70-year-old Sergei Naryshkin, head of Russian intelligence and a member of the Russian Federation's Security Council.
Bloomberg reports that the Russian delegation will also include 49-year-old Kirill Dmitriev, who is currently the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund. His involvement in the negotiations with the Americans was decided by the contacts he developed within Trump's circle during Trump's first term.
Dmitriev was also involved in negotiations for the release of former US embassy employee in Moscow Marc Fogel from Russian prison.
End of the war soon? Negotiators' names emerge
On Wednesday, after a phone conversation with Vladimir Putin, Trump announced that he ordered the "immediate" start of negotiations and that Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, and Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff are to participate.
However, he did not mention the Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Gen. Keith Kellogg.
