JOEL ROSE, HOST:
We begin this hour in Ukraine, where President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held talks today with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trump's son-in-law. It was their first official visit to Kyiv, a day after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. The envoys are trying to revive stalled peace efforts, with territory and security guarantees still major sticking points. NPR's Ukraine correspondent Joanna Kakissis is on the line from Kyiv. Joanna, you are among the reporters they spoke with today. What did they say?
JOANNA KAKISSIS, BYLINE: You know, well, Joel, they didn't really say much. They didn't reveal any kind of breakthrough, for example, which I think people were looking for. They did join Zelenskyy for a press conference outside the presidential palace under these gray skies and sometimes pouring rain. We got rained on, of course. They called talks in Moscow and in Kyiv substantive and said new ideas were on the table, though they did not get into details. Jared Kushner told reporters that Trump wants to end this war as soon as possible. And a Ukrainian journalist asked him if it could happen by winter, and this is how Kushner responded.
(SOUNDBITE OF PRESS CONFERENCE)
JARED KUSHNER: And I think if we can achieve that, it'd be an incredible thing. It doesn't mean that we'll - we will achieve it, but it's an effort that's very important to try.
KAKISSIS: Now, the Ukrainians, including Zelenskyy, looked really skeptical when Kushner said this. And afterwards, Zelenskyy told reporters he expected the war to continue, and he had talked with Kushner and Witkoff about a winter package of aid of support with a focus on air defense supplies.
ROSE: What are the main sticking points now?
KAKISSIS: Well, they still are security guarantees and the issue of territory. Now Zelenskyy reiterated his calls for security guarantees from the U.S. so Russia does not invade again after a peace deal. And he also said he and President Trump's envoys talked about the thorny issue of territory.
(SOUNDBITE OF PRESS CONFERENCE)
PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY: (Speaking Ukrainian).
KAKISSIS: So he told reporters that this issue remains very pressing and so complex that it can only be worked out through direct talks with leaders - himself, Vladimir Putin, maybe Trump and/or European leaders. Now, this issue of territory is explosive, Joel, because the Kremlin has been pushing for a peace deal that includes Ukraine giving up some land that Russia has not occupied by military force.
ROSE: With so much still unclear, is this visit by Trump's envoys even significant?
KAKISSIS: Well, it is significant, if only for symbolic reasons. Now, you know, this is the first trip President Trump's envoys, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, have taken to Kyiv, even though they have been to Moscow several times. Zelenskyy pushed very, very hard for this trip here. So the Ukrainians tried to make the most of the moment. Like, Kushner and Witkoff traveled to Ukraine by train since the war has closed airspace, and their train was called the Peace Express. And the fact that they were in Kyiv meant that Russia did not bomb the capital, which the Russians had been doing 24/7 before this weekend. Zelenskyy brought this up, too.
(SOUNDBITE OF PRESS CONFERENCE)
ZELENSKYY: (Speaking Ukrainian).
KAKISSIS: He said Kushner and Witkoff had done even more than Patriot Air Defense Systems to protect the city. Please, he said, come more often so maybe our people can live a little.
ROSE: That's NPR's Joanna Kakissis in Kyiv. Thanks, Joanna.
KAKISSIS: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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