Zelensky Meets Witkoff to Repair US Ties As Trump Courts Moscow

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held talks with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff in Oslo on Tuesday, seeking to repair a deteriorating relationship with Washington as Donald Trump pursued closer ties with Moscow.

The meeting came as Kyiv accused the U.S. of restricting support essential to its defenses, from warnings of Russian missile launches to satellite connections used by Ukrainian drones.

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere and Finnish President Alexander Stubb hosted the discussions.

Zelensky and Witkoff embraced before entering the meeting, and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, joined remotely.

Zelensky had met the Norwegian and Finnish leaders separately beforehand. The three were scheduled to address reporters after 1700 GMT.

Air Defense Deliveries in Dispute

Kyiv says Washington has failed to deliver air defense weapons purchased by European allies, reduced early warning of Russian launches and limited access to SpaceX’s Starshield satellite system.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged on Tuesday that a shipment of American air-defense missiles bought by European countries for Ukraine might still be awaiting delivery.

He rejected suggestions that Washington had adopted a policy of weakening Kyiv.

“The important takeaway for you is that there has not been some deliberate political directive to go out and harm Ukraine,” Rubio told reporters during a visit to India.

Washington also denies restricting intelligence or Starshield, the military version of SpaceX’s Starlink communications network.

Ukrainian officials say satellite terminals have stopped functioning on fast-moving platforms, including drones.

SpaceX chief Elon Musk has said the U.S. government controls Starshield and that Trump ultimately determines any restrictions.

Zelensky said he had discussed missile interceptors, launch warnings and restoring satellite services with Rubio.

Trump Presses for a Different Negotiator

The Oslo talks followed another public rebuke from Trump, who on Monday suggested Ukraine should choose someone other than Zelensky to conduct negotiations.

“Russia, frankly, has been fine on Ukraine,” Trump said.

He described Zelensky as “not helping matters much.” The Ukrainian president has refused Russia’s sweeping demands for ending the war.

Relations began worsening 10 days earlier, when Trump lifted sanctions on Russian diesel after agreeing with Vladimir Putin.

Trump said the move would reduce fuel prices, which have weighed on Republicans ahead of the November 3 congressional elections.

Over the weekend, he also granted a broad waiver covering tougher Russian sanctions due to take effect this week.

Western European governments have backed Zelensky and sought to prevent the dispute from widening, viewing Ukraine’s defense as central to their own security.

The Kremlin, meanwhile, said it hoped to arrange another meeting between Witkoff and Putin soon.

Russian Strikes Add Pressure

Russia has intensified attacks on Ukrainian electricity and fuel infrastructure despite Trump’s appeal for both countries to spare each other’s energy systems.

Overnight strikes hit energy facilities in seven Ukrainian regions, disrupting electricity supplies.

Further attacks targeted the western Lviv region and an energy facility in Kyiv on Tuesday, with outages reported in four districts of the capital.

Ukrainian officials also reported fatal attacks near Kyiv, outside Dnipro and in Kramatorsk.

Ukraine briefly suspended strikes on Russian refineries last week following Trump’s request, then resumed them after Moscow continued its attacks.

The dispute exposes Kyiv’s dependence on Washington even as European governments finance weapons purchases.

The Trump administration has largely ended direct arms provision while continuing to permit European-funded sales and supplying intelligence and technology Europe cannot match.