ByREUTERS

US special envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Russia's St. Petersburg on Wednesday to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, two sources told Reuters.

Russian special envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who will take part in the meeting with Putin, will meet Witkoff at the airport.

Witkoff is traveling to Russia from Norway, where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other officials.

Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law, as U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff stands nearby during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, September 5, 2026.
Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law, as U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff stands nearby during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, September 5, 2026. (credit: Mikhail Metzel/Sputnik/Pool/via Reuters)

Rubio says Witkoff's meeting with Zelensky was positive

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that his understanding was Witkoff's meeting with Zelensky a day earlier had been "positive," with "nothing unexpected" or "surprising."

"He will now, armed with those ideas, be able to go to St. Petersburg and share them with the Russian side, and let's see if we can make some progress," Rubio told reporters in Mumbai during his two-day visit to India.