January 1, US Envoys Press Putin On Ukraine Peace Hopes

Wyatt’s Take

• White House envoy Steve Witkoff heads to Moscow for tough talks with Putin after hashing out a peace plan with Ukraine.
• Key sticking points like land and NATO are far from settled, despite officials saying talks are productive.
• The U.S. has limited options left if Russia digs in its heels.

There’s a big push for a Ukraine peace deal, with White House envoy Steve Witkoff meeting with Moscow’s top man this week. After intense meetings with Ukraine, Witkoff and Jared Kushner are looking to see if Vladimir Putin will consider the 19-point plan they hammered out.

It’s the most action we’ve seen towards peace since 2022, but major hurdles aren’t budging easy. Land disputes, Ukraine’s security, and what a real ceasefire would mean are the big issues at hand. Whether Putin’s willing to give any ground is the open question now.

Officials from the U.S., Russia, and Ukraine have shopped around different versions of a plan, trying to find what sticks. One suggestion had Ukraine’s army capped at 600,000, but Kyiv and European leaders pushed for higher. Right now, Ukraine fields nearly 880,000 troops.

Recent meetings in Geneva and Florida aimed to slim down the plan. Even with progress, details are tight-lipped, and what divides both sides is still mostly under wraps.

“So much work remains,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said after negotiations. “But today was again a very productive and useful session where I think additional progress was made.”

“There’s a good chance we can make a deal,” Trump said.

Russia’s drawn a hard line, demanding Ukraine stay out of NATO despite the country’s aim to join. The stickiest issue, though, is who controls regions like Crimea and other eastern territories. Russia’s pushing to keep them, while Ukraine’s leaders say giving up land is a nonstarter.

Leadership shake-ups have added to the mess. Ukraine’s top negotiator quit after a corruption scandal, but before leaving, he made it clear:

“Not a single sane person today would sign a document to give up territory,”

he insisted.

Putin says he’s open to “serious” talks, but only if Ukraine’s troops leave areas Russia took over—something he claims will happen by force if not agreed.

“If they don’t withdraw, we will achieve this by force,”

Putin warned.

The U.S. could tighten sanctions or send more aid if a deal falls apart, but most harsh measures are already in place. Congress and the White House have steered billions to Ukraine since the war began.

Trump called the drawn-out talks frustrating, saying a deal “should have happened a long time ago,” but for now, talks are still on the table.

Read more at Fox News

Wyatt Matters

Folks know peace is always worth fighting for, but the heartland never trusts backroom deals that cost us security or get made at our expense. Regular Americans want strength, not just talk, when facing foreign bullies.