US envoy Witkoff in talks with Vladimir Putin about Ukraine – Europe live | Europe | The Guardian  (us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates.html)   (../../../../../../assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/manifest.json)  (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon.svg) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon-512.png) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon-360.png) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon-240.png) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon-120.png) (../../../../../../static.guim.co.uk/images/favicon-32x32.ico) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/) (https://i.guim.co.uk) (https://j.ophan.co.uk) (https://ophan.theguardian.com) (https://sourcepoint.theguardian.com) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/) (https://i.guim.co.uk) (https://j.ophan.co.uk) 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live&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?CMP=share_btn_url) Share                   Key events  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad884548f08e4aec91592d8#block-6ad884548f08e4aec91592d8) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 05:24 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 48m ago  Russia releases American man imprisoned for fighting in Ukraine   (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf#block-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 05:19 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 53m ago  Witkoff meeting Putin in St Petersburg   (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad8768e8f08e4aec915927f#block-6ad8768e8f08e4aec915927f) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 04:25 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2h ago  Republicans push back on Donald Trump’s wavering support for Ukraine   (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad870c78f08ed9449649e84#block-6ad870c78f08ed9449649e84) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 03:59 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2h ago  Ukraine's anti-corruption police search National Bank premises   (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad868e28f08ed9449649e53#block-6ad868e28f08ed9449649e53) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 03:51 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2h ago  Morning opening: Witkoff meets Putin in St Petersburg for talks on Ukraine                          (Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev greets US special envoy Steve Witkoff upon his arrival at Pulkovo Airport in Saint Petersburg, Russia.)          Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev greets US special envoy Steve Witkoff upon his arrival at Pulkovo Airport in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Photograph: Obtained by Reuters/Reuters     (us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates.html#img-1)   View image in fullscreen       Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev greets US special envoy Steve Witkoff upon his arrival at Pulkovo Airport in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Photograph: Obtained by Reuters/Reuters             (https://www.theguardian.com/profile/jakub-krupa) Jakub Krupa   Wed 21 Oct 2026 05.32 EDT  First published on Wed 21 Oct 2026 03.51 EDT   (mailto:?subject=US envoy Witkoff in talks with Vladimir Putin about Ukraine – Europe live&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?CMP=share_btn_url) Share                     From(Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 05:19 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 53m ago    (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf#block-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf) 05.19 EDT   Witkoff meeting Putin in St Petersburg  Witkoff is now talking to Putin, according to Russian state media. The pair is meeting in Saint Petersburg’s Konstantinovsky Palace.  Putin is joined by Dmitriev, who picked up Witkoff from the airport earlier. We will no doubt hear and hopefully see more from the meeting shortly. (mailto:?subject=US envoy Witkoff in talks with Vladimir Putin about Ukraine – Europe live&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf#block-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf) Share                  Key events  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad884548f08e4aec91592d8#block-6ad884548f08e4aec91592d8) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 05:24 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 48m ago  Russia releases American man imprisoned for fighting in Ukraine   (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf#block-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 05:19 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 53m ago  Witkoff meeting Putin in St Petersburg   (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad8768e8f08e4aec915927f#block-6ad8768e8f08e4aec915927f) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 04:25 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2h ago  Republicans push back on Donald Trump’s wavering support for Ukraine   (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad870c78f08ed9449649e84#block-6ad870c78f08ed9449649e84) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 03:59 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2h ago  Ukraine's anti-corruption police search National Bank premises   (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad868e28f08ed9449649e53#block-6ad868e28f08ed9449649e53) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 03:51 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2h ago  Morning opening: Witkoff meets Putin in St Petersburg for talks on Ukraine         (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad885f18f08ed9449649f11#block-6ad885f18f08ed9449649f11) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 05:29 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 42m ago   05.29 EDT    During their initial exchange, relayed via the Russian state news agency Tass, Putin reportedly said that he was interested in restoring ties and economic cooperation with the US, as he praised the diesel deal with Trump. He also recalled Trump’s comments on the need to end the Russian war of aggression in (https://www.theguardian.com/world/ukraine) Ukraine to stop the loss of human life, and asked about the talks in Oslo. In turn, Witkoff said he hoped Putin would consider resuming peace talks with the US and Ukraine for “technical discussions,” and said the Oslo meeting was productive, with “a foundation in place to move toward a ceasefire.” Let’s see if we get any more detail after the meeting. (mailto:?subject=US envoy Witkoff in talks with Vladimir Putin about Ukraine – Europe live&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-6ad885f18f08ed9449649f11#block-6ad885f18f08ed9449649f11) Share     Updated at (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 05:32 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 05.32 EDT        (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad884548f08e4aec91592d8#block-6ad884548f08e4aec91592d8) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 05:24 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 48m ago   05.24 EDT   Russia releases American man imprisoned for fighting in Ukraine  It looks like the hosts had something special lined up for the US guests… Russia has released an American man imprisoned on charges of fighting as mercenary in Ukraine , US envoy Witkoff says. Agencies identify him as Stephen Hubbard, arrested in 2024. (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/07/russia-court-convicts-american-stephen-james-hubbard-fighting-ukraine)  Russian court sentences 72-year-old American for fighting for Ukraine     Read more        (mailto:?subject=US envoy Witkoff in talks with Vladimir Putin about Ukraine – Europe live&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-6ad884548f08e4aec91592d8#block-6ad884548f08e4aec91592d8) Share       (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf#block-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 05:19 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 53m ago   05.19 EDT  (us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates.html#pinned-post)      Witkoff meeting Putin in St Petersburg  Witkoff is now talking to Putin, according to Russian state media. The pair is meeting in Saint Petersburg’s Konstantinovsky Palace.  Putin is joined by Dmitriev, who picked up Witkoff from the airport earlier. We will no doubt hear and hopefully see more from the meeting shortly. (mailto:?subject=US envoy Witkoff in talks with Vladimir Putin about Ukraine – Europe live&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf#block-6ad883108f08e4aec91592cf) Share       (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad8768e8f08e4aec915927f#block-6ad8768e8f08e4aec915927f) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 04:25 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2h ago   04.25 EDT   Republicans push back on Donald Trump’s wavering support for Ukraine Ariana Baio   Overnight, a handful of Republicans have spoken out against (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/donaldtrump) Donald Trump ’s (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/19/no-us-warning-russian-strikes-kyiv-power-plants-zelenskyy-ukraine-trump) softening stance on Russia , threatening to pull financial support for his agenda over his “embarrassing” handling of the Ukraine war.      (President Trump wearing a white "USA" cap is reflected in glass, his profile shown twice)   (us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates.html#img-2)   View image in fullscreen       President Donald Trump is reflected in protective glass after speaking at a campaign rally at Pitt–Greenville Airport. Photograph: Matt Ramey/AP  Don Bacon, an outgoing congressman in Nebraska, condemned Trump’s actions – which include a (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/09/trump-putin-russian-diesel-ukraine) stunning agreement to buy Russian diesel and the (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/17/trump-puts-new-russia-sanctions-passed-by-congress-on-hold-amid-deepening-row-with-ukraine) pausing of sanctions on Moscow – as “absolutely disgraceful” and accused the US president of cozying up to a “war criminal” in Vladimir Putin , his Russian counterpart. “It really is disgraceful, and the (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/republicans) Republicans that I associate with, there’s a lot of us, can’t stand it,” Bacon (https://x.com/TheLeadCNN/status/2112322167685705771) told CNN on Monday. “I think the president’s leverage in this Congress is shot.” Last week, Trump waived sanctions imposed on Russia through a (https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5025) law named after his longtime ally and late senator Lindsey Graham. The legislation, which he (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/17/trump-puts-new-russia-sanctions-passed-by-congress-on-hold-amid-deepening-row-with-ukraine) signed only last month, was intended to increase financial pressure on Russia, more than four years after it invaded Ukraine. Instead, Trump announced he had struck a deal with Putin to import diesel fuel, which has become more expensive for Americans largely due to Trump’s war with Iran. Trump (https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117389259991976695) has previously blamed Ukraine’s strikes on Russia. (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/20/republicans-push-back-trump-ukraine-russia)  Republicans push back on Donald Trump’s wavering support for Ukraine     Read more        (mailto:?subject=US envoy Witkoff in talks with Vladimir Putin about Ukraine – Europe live&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-6ad8768e8f08e4aec915927f#block-6ad8768e8f08e4aec915927f) Share           (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad870c78f08ed9449649e84#block-6ad870c78f08ed9449649e84) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 03:59 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2h ago   03.59 EDT   Ukraine's anti-corruption police search National Bank premises  Meanwhile, Ukraine’s ⁠anti-corruption police said ⁠that ⁠detectives were ​searching the premises of ⁠the National Bank of (https://www.theguardian.com/world/ukraine) Ukraine ⁠and also ​the ‌home address of ‌one of ‌the central bank’s employees, Reuters reported. The anti-corruption police said in a statement ‌on the Telegram app that ​no one has been detained or issued ⁠a suspicion notice. ​The central ​bank did ​not immediately ​respond ‌to ​a request ​for comment. (mailto:?subject=US envoy Witkoff in talks with Vladimir Putin about Ukraine – Europe live&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-6ad870c78f08ed9449649e84#block-6ad870c78f08ed9449649e84) Share       (https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/oct/21/us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates?page=with%3Ablock-6ad868e28f08ed9449649e53#block-6ad868e28f08ed9449649e53) (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 03:51 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2h ago   03.51 EDT   Morning opening: Witkoff meets Putin in St Petersburg for talks on Ukraine (Jakub Krupa)   Jakub Krupa   US special envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Saint Petersburg early morning for talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin about Ukraine,  a day after holding discussions with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the leaders of Norway and Finland. Witkoff was met at Pulkovo Airport by the Kremlin’s advisor for international economic cooperation, Kirill Dmitriev.      (Kirill Dmitriev greets Steve Witkoff on the tarmac near a jet)   (us-russia-ukraine-putin-witkoff-zelenskyy-france-italy-protests-europe-latest-news-updates.html#img-1)   View image in fullscreen       Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev greets US special envoy Steve Witkoff upon his arrival at Pulkovo Airport in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Photograph: Obtained by Reuters/Reuters  Let’s see how much of the positive tone expressed by Zelenskyy and the two European leaders after yesterday’s talks will hold at the end of the day.  But managing out expectations, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said he “didn’t know if any agreement will be reached today,” Russian news agency Interfax said. (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/20/us-has-resumed-sharing-intelligence-with-ukraine-about-russian-strikes-says-zelenskyy)  US has resumed sharing intelligence with Ukraine about Russian strikes, says Zelenskyy     Read more        Elsewhere, I will be looking for updates from (https://www.theguardian.com/world/france) France and Italy, as both countries step up their response to recent protests and riots that disrupted everyday life. (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/20/milan-luxury-shops-close-italy-to-deploy-troops-youth-protests-europe)  Italy to deploy 500 troops to Milan after days of protests and looting     Read more        Lots to cover. It’s Wednesday, 21 October 2026 , it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live . Good morning.  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