Putin warns US envoys Russia will target foreign troops in Ukraine

Vladimir Putin told American envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff at the Kremlin on Thursday that Russia would target any foreign troops deployed to Ukraine, calling such deployments a "continuation of war." He also refused to soften his territorial demands, insisting on full control over the four Ukrainian regions Moscow claims to have annexed.

The meeting came as Ukraine reported renewed disruptions to Elon Musk's Starlink satellite service — the second disruption Volodymyr Zelenskyy's government has publicly attributed to the constellation its forces depend on. Moscow, meanwhile, continues to pound Ukraine with bombs and missiles while negotiations proceed.

The envoys' itinerary itself maps the shape of the settlement being assembled. After Moscow, Witkoff and Kushner fly to Dublin to debrief Zelenskyy — the Ukrainian president says there is a "window of opportunity" to reach an agreement before the end of 2026 — and European representatives will join the next round of talks. Witkoff told reporters boarding his plane out of Moscow: "They're our partners, and it's important for them to be involved." British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said national security adviser Jonathan Powell would attend talks in Berlin.

Europe's involvement, however, is being negotiated on terms Moscow and Washington are setting together. Both capitals have urged European leaders to appoint a single representative empowered to negotiate for the continent. Putin said Thursday that once such a chief negotiator exists, "there will be a four-way dialogue." EU leaders, meeting in Dublin, have so far declined to name one — an EU official said the union would be represented by its institutions and predicted no agreement on a special envoy.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas pushed back on Moscow's preferred framing, which shifts discussion toward a new European security architecture. "We already have a European security architecture in place," she said, pointing to the Helsinki accords and the Budapest memorandum that guaranteed Ukraine's territorial integrity. The problem, she said, is that Russia is not keeping to those agreements, and architecture talk is a "distraction" without a ceasefire. Kallas suggested she should represent the EU alongside European Council President António Costa.

Witkoff and Kushner have made numerous visits to Russia; their latest trip was partly aimed, according to two people familiar with the talks, at securing European participation — on the understanding that Europe joins the process after the principals have agreed what it will cover.

EU leaders discuss on Friday who, if anyone, speaks for Europe.