US envoy meets Putin in Russia for Ukraine ceasefire talks 

MOSCOW, Apr 25: US envoy Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Friday to tout Washington's plan to settle the Ukraine conflict, a day after Donald Trump issued a direct appeal to the Russian president to halt his offensive.

Trump has been trying to broker a truce between Moscow and Kyiv to end three years of fighting, but has failed to extract any major concessions from the Kremlin despite several rounds of negotiation.

Russia launched its full-scale offensive on Ukraine in 2022, hoping to take the country in days, but has since become embroiled in a huge, bloody conflict that has killed tens of thousands.
Video published by Russian state media showed Witkoff meeting Putin at the Kremlin, with the two smiling, shaking hands and exchanging a few words in English before beginning talks.

The billionaire real estate investor is playing a key role in Washington's peace efforts and has already met Putin three times since Trump returned to the White House in January.

Trump has threatened to walk away from talks if he does not see progress towards a ceasefire.

On Thursday, after Russian attacks on Kyiv killed 12 people, Trump wrote on social media: "Vladimir, STOP!", adding "Lets get the Peace Deal DONE!"

When asked how he would respond if Russia did not accept a deal, Trump said Thursday: "I won't be happy, let me put it that way. Things will happen."

The United States has not revealed the details of its peace plan, but has suggested freezing the front line and accepting Russian control of Crimea -- a peninsula annexed by the Kremlin in 2014 -- in exchange for peace. �"AFP