US president praises Kellogg as 'Highly Respected Military Expert,' says he 'will deal directly with (Ukrainian) President Zelenskyy'

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says Vladimir Putin met with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff to discuss the American proposal for a cease-fire in the war with Ukraine.

The Kremlin said on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin had sent U.S. President Donald Trump a message about his proposal for a ceasefire in Ukraine via Trump's special envoy and that there were grounds for "cautious optimism.

With Ukraine signed up to US proposals for a 30-day ceasefire, the pressure is now on the Kremlin to decide whether it too will accept President Donald Trump’s plan to bring the Ukraine war to a halt,

Rubio, who led the American delegation to Tuesday's talks in Saudi Arabia, said Washington would present the ceasefire offer to the Kremlin, which has so far opposed anything short of a permanent end to the conflict and hasn't accepted any concessions.

The Kremlin said on Wednesday that it needed to be briefed by the United States on the outcome of U.S.-Ukrainian talks in Saudi Arabia before commenting on whether a proposed ceasefire in Ukraine was acceptable to Russia.

Vladimir Putin told a news conference that he agreed with the idea of a ceasefire, but he immediately spelled out tough conditions that appeared to rule out agreement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin met with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff to discuss details of the American proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in the war with Ukraine, asking him to convey Moscow's thoughts to Washington, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday.

President Donald Trump on Saturday said he was naming Keith Kellogg his special envoy for Ukraine, narrowing the retired general’s portfolio after reports he was sidelined during recent US-Russia talks at the Kremlin’s request.