Putin Resists Pressure as US Push for Ukraine Peace Stalls

Two days of shuttle diplomacy — in Oslo and then St Petersburg — produced warm words but no breakthrough toward ending the war in Ukraine, according to BBC Russia Editor Steve Rosenberg, who reported from Moscow this week.

Norway's prime minister called Tuesday's talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, US special envoy Steve Witkoff and European representatives "good and constructive." In Oslo, officials floated the idea of a trilateral summit bringing together Russian President Vladimir Putin, Zelensky and President Trump. Witkoff then flew to St Petersburg to brief Putin on those discussions. The response from the Kremlin, Rosenberg writes, suggests Moscow is not in a hurry.

What happened in St Petersburg?

Witkoff told Putin about the Oslo talks and what Witkoff described as "new approaches from the Europeans and Kyiv," according to Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov, who took part in the St Petersburg meeting. Ushakov's verdict, relayed to Rosenberg, was blunt: "In terms of resolving the Ukraine crisis, there wasn't much there that was useful." Asked later by Russian state television how close the sides were to peace, Ushakov offered little clarity: "I don't know how close we are getting, but things are moving in that direction."

Witkoff, writing on X after the meeting, struck a more hopeful note, saying "there is still important work to do" and that "President Trump remains committed to seeing this war end."

Why isn't Putin under pressure to end the war?

Rosenberg argues Putin has little incentive to rush. Ukraine's air defenses are under what Rosenberg describes as severe strain, and winter is approaching — a season Moscow may view as an opportunity to intensify pressure on Ukrainian infrastructure rather than negotiate. Putin is also watching Washington: a US president, in Rosenberg's assessment, clearly wants a larger and more profitable relationship with Moscow, which further reduces any incentive on the Russian side to compromise quickly.

That reading was echoed, from a different angle, by Russian MP and state TV anchor Evgeny Popov, who told Rosenberg: "Right now Trump is the only leader in the Western world who is doing something for peace." Pressed on whether that meant peace on Russia's terms, Popov answered, "Of course!"

What has Trump done that eases pressure on Moscow?

In recent days, Trump has paused some sanctions on Russia, agreed to buy Russian diesel and criticized Zelensky, moves Rosenberg says ease pressure on the Kremlin. Those steps have not gone unnoticed in Moscow, where officials have framed Washington's posture as validation of Russia's negotiating position rather than a push for concessions.

By the numbers

• 2 consecutive days of diplomacy — in Oslo and St Petersburg — produced no agreed summit date.
• 1 American released: US citizen Stephen Hubbard was freed by Russia around the time Witkoff met Putin, the BBC reported.

Is a Putin-Zelensky-Trump summit still possible?

Not imminently, by Rosenberg's account. Putin has shown little interest in sitting across from Zelensky unless the venue is Moscow. The Kremlin has signaled it may allow trilateral contacts to resume next month in Abu Dhabi, but only at the technical level — a notch below leaders' talks. Rosenberg notes a separate possibility: a meeting next month in China among Putin, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, though that would not be the Ukraine-focused trilateral Oslo participants had hoped for.

What to watch

• Whether technical-level talks actually convene in Abu Dhabi next month, and who represents each side.
• Whether Washington restores paused sanctions on Moscow or continues the diesel purchase arrangement.
• Signs of a Putin-Trump-Xi meeting in China and whether Ukraine appears on that agenda.
• Ukrainian air-defense strain as winter approaches, and whether Russian strikes on infrastructure intensify.

For now, the diplomatic record Rosenberg lays out points to parallel tracks rather than convergence: Washington publicizing "important work," a Kremlin aide calling the Oslo input not "useful," and no fixed date for the leaders' summit that Oslo participants had hoped might follow.

Read the original BBC report