Kushner says most of Ukraine–Russia peace deal is ready, with territorial question the last obstacle
US special envoy Jared Kushner told the Yalta European Strategy forum in Kyiv on September 12 that most of a Ukraine–Russia peace agreement has been prepared, and that the territorial question — Ukraine's refusal to withdraw to the line Russia is demanding — is the remaining obstacle. He said he hopes to announce "next steps" in the talks within the next two weeks and expressed support for returning to a trilateral format. Kyiv has previously rejected Putin's demands that Ukrainian forces withdraw from Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.
Key points
- Kushner spoke via video link at the YES forum in Kyiv on September 12, 2026.
- He said most of a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia is already prepared; the territorial question is the remaining obstacle.
- Kushner said Russia has outlined a line to which it wants Ukrainian troops to withdraw, and Ukraine is currently unwilling to do so.
- He said he hopes to announce "next steps" in the talks within the next two weeks.
- Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff visited Moscow on September 5 (meeting Putin for over three hours) and Kyiv on September 6, meeting President Zelensky.
- The Kyiv meeting included three rounds of talks; national security advisors from Germany, France and the UK joined the second round.
- Head of the President's Office Kyrylo Budanov said Kyiv is preparing for a new round of trilateral talks with Russia and the US in October 2026.
Why it matters
Kushner's characterization by a senior US envoy that the territorial question is the sole remaining obstacle frames the diplomatic pressure on Kyiv rather than on Moscow. The two-week window he set creates a concrete near-term expectation, while Budanov's confirmation of preparations for October trilateral talks points to a real, imminent diplomatic track. If a framework deal is as close to completion as Kushner suggested, hard choices for Ukraine — particularly over Donbas — are now a matter of weeks, not months.
What happened
Jared Kushner, special envoy of the US president, addressed the Yalta European Strategy forum in Kyiv by video link on September 12, 2026. He said most of a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia has been prepared and that the territorial question — specifically, Ukraine's unwillingness to withdraw forces to the line Russia has outlined — is the remaining obstacle. He said he hopes to announce "next steps" in the negotiations "in the next two weeks" and expressed a preference for returning to a trilateral format.
Kushner and Steve Witkoff had visited Moscow on September 5, meeting Russian leader Vladimir Putin for more than three hours, and then traveled to Kyiv on September 6 for the first time since the start of the full-scale invasion. In Kyiv they held three rounds of talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky; national security advisors from Germany, France and the UK joined the second round. Back in the US, Trump spoke with Putin on September 8 — without calling Zelensky — and on September 9 said Putin was ready to conclude a peace deal. On the same Saturday as Kushner's forum remarks, Russian strikes on several Ukrainian regions killed 9 people and wounded dozens, damaging residential buildings and infrastructure.
Head of the President's Office Kyrylo Budanov said a new round of trilateral talks with Russia and the US could take place in October 2026, with Kyiv preparing accordingly. Zelensky has previously and repeatedly rejected Russia's demands that Ukrainian forces withdraw from Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian-language coverage headlines the territorial dispute as the core sticking point and emphasizes that Ukraine is not willing to withdraw to the line Russia is demanding. Ukrainian sources foreground Budanov's statement that Kyiv is preparing for new trilateral talks in October, signalling readiness to negotiate without conceding on territory, and give prominent attention to the audience laughter when Kushner referenced Putin's "commitment" — underscoring domestic scepticism toward Russian intent.
How international sources describe it
International agency reporting, particularly Azerbaijani and Qatari outlets, frames the story as US-led optimism: Kushner's hope for "next steps" in two weeks and a planned trilateral meeting. These sources emphasize the diplomatic momentum from the Kushner–Witkoff trips to Moscow and Kyiv and the US characterization that most of the deal is prepared and a "creative solution" is being sought, with comparatively less emphasis on Ukraine's refusal to cede land.
Where reporting differs
Sources differ on the timing of the expected next trilateral meeting: most reports say "October," while one source specifies "early October 2026," and another states "October 2026" — a narrow rather than fundamental disagreement on dates. There is also variation in whether the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi is reported to have proposed hosting the next trilateral meeting in the UAE; the claim appears in some accounts of the Kushner–Witkoff meetings but is not uniformly echoed across all sources.
Background
The previous trilateral meeting between Ukraine, the US and Russia was held in Geneva in February, according to several sources. Zelensky has repeatedly rejected Putin's demands that Ukrainian forces withdraw from Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, and Budanov has previously said Ukraine is ready to end the war but will not give up land. The war has been ongoing for more than four years.