Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russia’s Tass news agency that Putin’s order for a pause in strikes on Kyiv would begin at midnight local time, adding that the decision was tied to preparations for the American delegation’s visit to the Ukrainian capital the following day.
The US envoys — Witkoff and Kushner — were met at Vnukovo International Airport by Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev, according to Russian state media. Their visit comes as US President Donald Trump said the United States had a “fresh concrete proposal” aimed at ending the conflict, now in its fifth year, though he did not elaborate.
While the two sides have agreed to a focused ceasefire around the diplomacy, the air war has intensified elsewhere. In a social media post on Saturday, Zelenskyy said Russia had carried out overnight strikes on Kyiv and Boryspil international airports, linking the attack to the planned US visit. “Clearly, these Russian strikes on the airports are a reaction to the discussions and preparations for the possibility of the US side using an aircraft,” he wrote.
August saw deadly strikes across both countries. Ukraine’s drone attacks on Russian oil refineries have caused fuel shortages and rising prices for motorists, while some 30 strikes on warehouses belonging to online retailer Wildberries have affected the consumer economy. On Friday, a Russian drone hit Ukraine’s SBU security service headquarters in Kyiv — the 10th consecutive day of heavy attacks on the capital — and Zelenskyy vowed to retaliate. Most recently, Russian strikes killed five employees at an industrial facility in the Dnipropetrovsk region, according to local military administration head Oleksandr Hanzha. “A locksmith, an electrician, a plumber and a machinist,” Hanzha said. “People of peaceful professions. They were simply working their shift.”
The diplomatic window is narrow: the three-day strike pause on Kyiv is set to expire as talks continue. Travel details of the US envoys’ planned trip to Kyiv have not been disclosed.