Will Trump get serious about ending the Russia-Ukraine War?

Eighteen months after President Donald Trump launched his bid to broker an end to the Russia-Ukraine War, his chief negotiator, Steve Witkoff, finally traveled to Kyiv. While welcomed by Ukrainians, it remains unclear whether the visit presages a genuine change in the Trump administration’s mediation approach, which thus far has proven a dismal failure.

A successful mediation will require more than Witkoff visiting the Ukrainian capital.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict dates back to 2014, when Russian military forces seized Crimea and became involved in fighting in Donbas. Moscow’s 2022 invasion turned that conflict into the largest war in Europe since 1945.

The first Trump administration (2017-2021) did nothing to advance a settlement that might have averted the 2022 Russian assault. However, when Trump returned to office in 2025, he claimed he would quickly end the war. While Kyiv has shown a readiness to take painful decisions to stop the fighting, Trump’s mediation has failed to produce a settlement or a general ceasefire or even some evident change in the Kremlin’s harsh demands. 

After nine visits to Moscow, Witkoff paid his first visit to Kyiv on Sept. 6. Accompanied by Jared Kushner, he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. It is good that he went. One can hardly expect to mediate a conflict if one talks only to one side. The British, French and German national security advisors joined part of the discussion, also a positive step given Europe’s interest in how the conflict might be settled.

Witkoff’s visit bought the Ukrainian capital a brief respite from daily Russian missile and drone attacks. Unfortunately, his meetings in Kyiv and in........

© The Hill