Putin orders 3-day halt to strikes on Kyiv ahead of US envoys visit

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday ordered a three-day halt to strikes on Kyiv effective from midnight local time (2100GMT), the Kremlin announced, marking a temporary de-escalation ahead of a planned visit by two senior US envoys to the Ukrainian capital.

Kremlin announcement

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian state news agency Tass that the decision was taken specifically because of the American delegation's upcoming travel to Ukraine, stating: "Russian President and Supreme Commander-in-Chief Putin ordered no strikes on Kyiv for three days, effective midnight today. This is due to American talks in Kyiv." He added that Putin would receive Witkoff and Kushner later on Saturday evening.

Peskov confirmed the meeting would proceed as scheduled, noting the discussions typically run long. "The meeting with the president will indeed take place. There will be a discussion. As a rule, they have been quite lengthy before," he said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had stated on Friday that Kyiv would refrain from strikes during the envoys' Moscow visit and urged Russia to take reciprocal steps when they arrive in Ukraine.

Diplomatic track

The last US-mediated negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv took place in Abu Dhabi and Geneva earlier this year, with three rounds held between late January and mid-February. Talks have since remained stalled, with both sides attributing the pause to Washington's shifting focus toward the conflict with Iran that erupted in late February.