Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, will travel to Moscow on Monday, a U.S. official tells
Fox News.
The trip comes as peace talks between Ukraine and Russia show signs of progress, with the White House pushing a peace plan to end the nearly four-year-long war.
On Sunday, Witkoff — a central figure in negotiating the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas — joined Secretary of State Marco Rubio and senior advisor Jared Kushner in Florida to meet with Ukrainian negotiators.
Rubio described the meeting as "very productive." In a statement, Rubio said that the end goal is "not just the end of the war."
"Obviously, that's essential and fundamental. We want to see the end of the killing and the death and the suffering, and I'm sure the Ukrainian side, I know they do as well," Rubio said.
"They want peace. But it's also about securing an end to the war that leaves Ukraine sovereign and independent and with an opportunity at real prosperity."
Last week, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow could reject the White House's peace deal framework if it does not uphold the "spirit and letter" of what President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to at the Alaska summit in August.
