Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday voiced readiness to drop his country’s bid to join NATO in exchange for Western security guarantees, but rejected the U.S. push for ceding territory to Russia as he held talks with U.S. envoys on ending the war.
Zelenskyy sat down with U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.
In a readout provided by Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy said that a „lot of progress was made“ during the meeting, without providing details.
Speaking ahead of the meeting, Zelensky signaled that Ukraine seeks NATO-like security guarantees as part of a peace deal to prevent future Russian aggression, as full membership is opposed by the U.S. and other partners.
Ahead of the meeting, Axios reported, citing a senior U.S. official, that the Trump administration may be willing to provide Congress-approved NATO-like security guarantees.
Some conservative and libertarian-minded Republicans have broken with Trump over his approach to Venezuela. Many Republicans have embraced an “America First” view of foreign policy and oppose regime change in other countries if they do not believe it benefits Americans.
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Trump’s proposal for a peace deal on the Russia-Ukraine war has also drawn scrutiny. Critics have raised concerns that the deal may be too favorable to Russia, pointing to proposals that Ukraine would give up the eastern Donbas region and shrink its army to end a war started by Russia more than three years ago.
The original 28-Point Peace Plan, which was drafted by the United States, has been fine-tuned, with additional input from both sides, and there are only a few remaining points of disagreement. In the hopes of finalizing this Peace Plan, I have directed my Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with President Putin in Moscow and, at the same time, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll will be meeting with the Ukrainians. I will be briefed on all progress made, along with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles. I look forward to hopefully meeting with President Zelenskyy and President Putin soon, but ONLY when the deal to end this War is FINAL or, in its final stages. Thank you for your attention to this very important matter, and let’s all hope that PEACE can be accomplished AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!
U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is set to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as Washington aims to finalize a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Nov. 25.
„In the hopes of finalizing this Peace Plan, I have directed my Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with President Putin in Moscow and, at the same time, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll will be meeting with the Ukrainians,“ Trump said in a post to Truth Social.
“I know what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done: Donetsk and maybe a land swap somewhere,” Witkoff reportedly said.
Bloomberg did not say how it obtained the recording, which was likely made by US intelligence agencies who routinely monitor and eavesdrop on foreign officials’ conversations.
Carsten Kühntopp berichtet aus dem ARD-Studio Washington, dass mehrere Formulierungen des Papiers tatsächlich wie direkte Übersetzungen aus dem Russischen ins Englischen klingen. Das US-Außenministerium dementierte jedoch: die Russen und Ukrainer hätten lediglich Input für den US-Plan geliefert.
Hochrangige Mitarbeiter in Außenministerium und Nationalem Sicherheitsrat erfuhren laut Kühntopp von dem Plan allerdings erst aus der Presse. Die Verwirrung um die Herkunft des Plans spreche entweder für ein chaotisches Vorgehen der Regierung oder für einen Machtkampf zwischen Rubio, Witkoff, Vizepräsident JD Vance und anderen um den richtigen Kurs gegenüber Russland.
Today, 10:34 am
US special envoy Steve Witkoff and top White House advisor Jared Kushner land in Israel, the US Embassy tells The Times of Israel.
Their visit is part of a concerted US push to keep the fledgling ceasefire in Gaza from fraying further, a day after two IDF troops were killed in a Hamas attack and Israel responded with airstrikes across the Strip.
TEL AVIV, ISRAEL — October 11, 2025: Thousands gathered at a Tel Aviv rally supporting the release of Israeli captives from Gaza, where U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff praised Prime Minister Netanyahu.
While the crowd cheered “Thank you!” for Witkoff and U.S. efforts, boos erupted when Netanyahu was mentioned. Relatives of hostages have criticized the Israeli leader for allegedly delaying negotiations for political gain.
Witkoff defended Netanyahu and his negotiator, Ron Dermer, saying both had sacrificed much for Israel and devoted themselves to the country’s service.
Thousands gathered at Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square Saturday to celebrate the recently signed peace deal between Israel and Hamas, which was brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump. Upon mention of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s part in establishing the first phase of the deal, the crowd erupted in boos, repeatedly interrupting U.S. envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff’s speech. #Politics #BenjaminNetanyahu #Israel #Hamas #Gaza
US special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, on Saturday said he visited Gaza alongside Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, “to verify Israel’s compliance with Phase I of the [Gaza ceasefire] agreement”.
Witkoff, in a statement, said that he was also accompanied by CENTCOM chief Brad Cooper.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) has confirmed that the IDF completed its withdrawal to the new agreed-upon deployment lines in Gaza, US Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff says on X.
“The 72-hour period to release the hostages has begun,” he adds.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office publishes photos of the premier alongside US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, as they participate in the full cabinet meeting where ministers are due to vote on the first phase of Trump’s plan to end the war in Gaza.
Moments before the president‘s announcement, photos emerged from the negotiation room in Sharm el-Sheikh showing senior officials embracing and shaking hands as reports indicated significant progress toward a hostage release deal. Retired General Nitzan Alon was seen shaking hands with Qatar’s Prime Minister Al-Thani, with special envoy Steve Witkoff in the background.
Earlier, the statement read out by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt made a similar claim but did not include the line that the warning came “too late to stop the attack”.
Following Leavitt’s press briefing, Qatar said that reports that it was given advanced warning from the US of the Israeli attack on Doha are false and that US officials first warned Qatar of the attack 10 minutes after it had begun.
It’s therefore unclear what Trump means, as my colleague Robert Mackey notes, in that he seems to suggest that he both has the power to stop Israeli strikes, but for some reason did not have the power to stop the one that took place today.
(4 hours ago)
Commenting on the ceasefire proposal agreed to by Hamas, the former Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister Hussein Haridy said Israel may not back a deal – even though the current proposal agreed to by the Palestinian group is “almost identical” to one Israel agreed to a few weeks ago.
It would mark a stunning escalation of the nearly 22-month war in the territory that has already been largely destroyed and where experts say famine is unfolding. It would put the lives of countless Palestinians and about 20 living hostages at risk, and deepen Israel‘s already stark international isolation.
It would also face fierce opposition within Israel: Families of the hostages would consider it a virtual death sentence, and much of the security establishment is also reportedly opposed to an open-ended occupation that would bog down and further strain the army after nearly two years of regional wars.
Trump was asked whether he‘d support a full Israeli occupation of Gaza as Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has suggested. The president sidestepped, saying only that everything beyond food aid is „pretty much up to Israel.“
“Well, I don‘t know what the suggestion is. I know that we have, we are there now trying to get people fed,” Trump said.
Driving the news: Witkoff flew in from Miami to meet Trump for dinner on Monday, the sources say, fresh off a visit last week to Israel and Gaza.
A U.S. official said it was decided that the Trump administration will „take over“ management of the humanitarian effort in Gaza because Israel isn‘t handling it adequately.
The official didn‘t say what the U.S. role would actually entail, but said Gulf countries like Qatar will contribute funds, while Jordan and Egypt will also likely be involved.
The plan would see Hamas release ten living Israeli captives and the remains of 18 others in three phases. For the living captives four on day one, two on day 30, and four on day 60. As for the bodies, six will be returned on day ten, another six on day 30, and the remaining six on day 50.
In return, Israeli forces would begin withdrawing to positions held before 2 March 2025.
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“Witkoff’s only concern is the release of the Israeli captives, but he shows a complete disregard for the continuous killing of thousands Palestinian civilians, majority of whom are women and children, and the suffering of the spread of famine for the two million Palestinians in Gaza“ the Palestinian source noted.
“Hamas felt Witkoff betrayed them twice. The first when Israel broke the US guaranteed deal on 2 March by imposing the embargo on aid and then returning to full blown war on 18 March, with Witkoff’s and the American administration’s full support and cover,“ the source said.
„And the second time, when Hamas released the American-Israeli soldier with an expectation of humanitarian relief and a new approach towards the negotiations, which clearly has not been the case,” they added.
The White House denounced Hamas’s response on Saturday to a new American cease-fire proposal as totally unacceptable and said it “only takes us backward” after the group sought firmer guarantees that the deal would lead to a permanent end to the war.
Under the U.S. proposal, which was floated by Steve Witkoff, President Trump’s Mideast envoy, Israel and Hamas would halt the fighting in Gaza for at least 60 days, during which some hostages would be freed in exchange for Palestinians jailed by Israel. And there would be further U.S.-backed negotiations on a permanent end to the war.
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A Hamas official outside of Gaza had said earlier on Saturday that the
group was seeking amendments to the Witkoff proposal around the guarantees for ending the war decisively.
(today)
US special envoy Steve Witkoff has told CNN that a ceasefire-hostage deal for Gaza is currently on the table with a pathway to end the war, and urged Hamas to accept it.
The proposal would see the release of half of the living hostages and half of those who have died in exchange for a temporary ceasefire before negotiations begin for a comprehensive agreement to end the war.
He declined to specify how long that temporary truce would last, which has been a key issue in the negotiations.
(today)
Al Jazeera’s sources said Hamas and the US’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, agreed to the draft deal at a meeting in the Qatari capital, Doha. They said it includes a 60-day ceasefire, and the release of 10 living captives held in Gaza, over two stages.
US President Donald Trump would guarantee the terms of the deal and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. The agreement would also allow for the entry of humanitarian aid, without conditions, from day one, the sources said.
(24 hours ago)
Sources told Al Jazeera that representatives of Hamas and US special envoy Steve Witkoff have reached a draft ceasefire agreement in Qatar’s capital, Doha.
However, a US official told Al Jazeera that, according to Witkoff, Hamas has not agreed to a proposal currently on the table, and what he’s seen from the Palestinian group is “disappointing and completely unacceptable”.
Al Jazeera’s sources said the draft of the deal included a 60-day truce, the release of 10 living captives, and the return of bodies of others in return for Palestinian prisoners over two stages.
Five Israeli captives would be freed at the start of the agreement, with the other five released on the 60th day, they said.
Witkoff also rejected the notion that Hamas had accepted his offer for a hostage deal and a ceasefire in Gaza, telling Reuters that what he had seen was „completely unacceptable“ and the proposal being discussed was not the same as his.
Several news outlets reported on Monday that Hamas accepted a ceasefire proposal that reportedly involves the releasing of 10 captives in two batches and a 70-day truce.
Citign a Hamas source, the AFP reported that Hamas agreed to the new proposal by US envoy Steve Witkoff.
However, Witkoff appeared to walk back the reports. He told Axios on Monday that he was „disappointed“ that Hamas did not accept his proposal.
White House envoy Steve Witkoff told Axios on Monday he is „disappointed“ that Hamas has so far failed to accept his proposal for a new Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal.
The United States government has not said anything about this deal to reporters, in fact, it’s a bit of a ghost town at the White House North Lawn because it’s a federal holiday here.
Hamas has agreed to a proposal by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff for a Gaza ceasefire, a Palestinian official close to the group told Reuters on Monday, paving the way for a possible end to the war with Israel.
The new proposal, which sees the release of ten hostages and 70 days of truce, was received by Hamas through mediators.
At another meeting with hostage families this week, Witkoff was pressed on why the US didn’t force Israel to stop. “We’re not the Israeli government. We don’t disagree. The Israeli government is a sovereign government. They can’t tell us what to do, and we can’t tell them what to do,” Witkoff said, according to a recording of the meeting obtained by Haaretz.
Israel’s military operations in Gaza are entirely reliant on US military aid, meaning the US has the ability to pressure Netanyahu to end the slaughter and allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, which has been under a total Israeli blockade since March 2.