Key developments on April 11:
- US envoy Witkoff proposes giving Russia 'ownership' of Ukrainian regions, Reuters reports
- Trump urges Russia "to get moving" to end war against Ukraine
- Putin meets U.S. envoy Witkoff to discuss Ukraine, Kremlin says
- "Several hundred" Chinese nationals fighting for Russia, Zelensky says
- Allies pledge "record" $23.8 billion to Ukraine at Ramstein summit as U.K. warns 2025 will be "critical"
- Russia has fired 70 missiles, 2,200 drones at Ukraine since March 11 ceasefire proposal, Kyiv says
U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff has told President Donald Trump that giving Moscow "ownership" of four occupied Ukrainian regions would be the fastest way to achieve a ceasefire, Reuters reported on April 11, citing two unnamed U.S. officials and five other undisclosed sources.
According to Reuters, Witkoff conveyed this proposal to U.S. President Donald Trump after meeting with Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev in Washington in early April.
The news came as Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg to discuss a possible path toward a settlement in Ukraine.
According to Reuters's sources, Trump administration officials are increasingly divided on how to break the deadlock in Russia's war against Ukraine, with Witkoff and U.S. Special Envoy Keith Kellogg disagreeing on the best course forward.
Kellogg has argued that Ukraine would never agree to unilaterally cede total ownership of the territories to Russia, Reuters reported.
In a March interview with American far-right political commentator Tucker Carlson, Witkoff openly parroted Russian propaganda regarding Ukraine's occupied territories.
Witkoff claimed that the majority of people in Ukraine's Russian-occupied territories had participated in referendums and "indicated that they want to be under Russian rule."
"Witkoff must go, and (U.S. Secretary of State Marco) Rubio must take his place," according to a March 26 letter from Eric Levine, a major Republican donor, cited by Reuters. The letter, sent to a group including Republican donors, was written after the Carlson interview and criticized Witkoff for praising Putin.
Some Republican lawmakers were concerned about Witkoff's pro-Russia stance in the Carlson interview and called Rubio and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz to complain, according to one of the sources.
In the interview, Witkoff referred to the Russian sham vote on the annexation of Ukraine's Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts held in September 2022.
The hastily organized "referendums" were held at gunpoint in the Russian-controlled parts of the regions, with widespread voter intimidation and soldiers going door to door with ballot boxes.
The so-called "referendums" contradicted international, Ukrainian and even Russian law and were recognized only by two countries — Russia and North Korea, both of which have little knowledge of free elections.
Moscow illegally declared the annexation of Crimea in 2014, as well as the partially occupied Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts eight years later.
The Trump administration has already signaled it expects Kyiv to make territorial concessions as part of a possible peace deal, calling a return to Ukraine's pre-2014 borders "unrealistic."
Oleg Sukhov
Trump urges Russia 'to get moving' to end war against Ukraine
U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on the Truth Social platform on April 11 that Russia "has to get moving" to end its war against Ukraine.
"Russia has to get moving. Too many people are dying, thousands a week, in a terrible and senseless war — a war that should have never happened, and wouldn’t have happened, if I were president," Trump said.
Despite repeated threats, the Trump administration has not yet imposed any major sanctions on Russia. At the same time, the White House previously paused all military and intelligence assistance to Ukraine in March, pressuring Kyiv to agree to a mineral resource deal.
Trump's post preceded a meeting between his special envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg to discuss a potential path toward a settlement in Ukraine.
The statement also came a month after Ukraine agreed to a U.S. proposal for a full 30-day ceasefire during talks in Jeddah on March 11, provided Russia abides by the conditions. Moscow has rejected the deal unless it includes conditions undermining Ukraine's defenses, namely a full halt on foreign military aid.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
Putin meets U.S. envoy Witkoff to discuss Ukraine, Kremlin says
Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff met on April 11 to discuss a possible path toward a settlement in Ukraine, the Kremlin said.
The Kremlin published a video showing a handshake between Witkoff and Putin.
Witkoff, who has led Trump's effort to broker a ceasefire between Moscow and Kyiv, had previously arrived in Russia for his third meeting with the Russian leader.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov tempered expectations of the upcoming talks, calling them a continuation of diplomatic efforts that is unlikely to bring a major breakthrough.
A possible meeting between Trump and Putin could be on the agenda, Peskov said.
Adam Sybera
"Several hundred" Chinese nationals fighting for Russia, Zelensky says
At least "several hundred" Chinese citizens are fighting on Russia's side in the war against Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on April 11.
The alleged number of Chinese nationals joining Russian forces has increased since Zelensky’s previous statement. On April 9, he said that 155 Chinese citizens were fighting for Moscow on Ukrainian territory.
Earlier this week, Kyiv captured two Chinese nationals fighting for Russia in Donetsk Oblast.
"As of now, there is information indicating that at least several hundred Chinese nationals are fighting as part of Russia’s occupation forces. This means Russia is clearly trying to prolong the war even by using Chinese lives," Zelensky said, addressing Western partners at a Ramstein-format summit in Brussels.
"Putin was not satisfied with soldiers from North Korea. Now he is trying to cover his shortages by pulling in yet another nation — the Chinese," the president added.
Kollen Post
Allies pledge "record" $23.8 billion to Ukraine at Ramstein summit as U.K. warns 2025 will be "critical"
NATO allies committed more than 21 billion euros ($23.8 billion) in long-term military aid to Ukraine during the April 11 meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG), British Defense Secretary John Healey said.
"This is record support in military aid to Ukraine," Healey said.
"2025 is the critical year for this war," Healey said. "Now is the critical moment... for defense industries, militaries and governments to step up."
The defense secretary stressed that the pledges were not only about firepower but about sending a clear message: "We stand with you in the fight and in the peace."
London has allocated 4.5 billion pounds ($5.8 billion) for Ukraine in 2025 — its largest annual contribution to date. The U.K. and Norway earlier pledged an additional 450 million pounds ($585 million) in combined military support.
Germany announced it would send four IRIS-T air defense systems, tanks, armored vehicles, missiles, shells, and more, with the contribution of 11 billion euros (nearly $14.4 billion) through 2029.
The newly unveiled sum shows that "the message was understood very clearly, that the support for Ukraine cannot diminish," Lithuania's Defense Minister Dovile Sakaliene told journalists on the sidelines of the summit, according to a Kyiv Independent reporter.
"Lithuania specifically pledged additionally almost 30 million euros ($34 million), and that means that this year, we have already pledged 110 million euros ($125 million), and we will, of course, reach 200 million ($280 million), and probably go higher," she added.
The Netherlands has also allocated 150 million euros ($170 million) to boost Ukraine's air defenses, Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans announced.
Kateryna Denisova
Russia has fired 70 missiles, 2,200 drones at Ukraine since March 11 ceasefire proposal, Kyiv says
Russia has launched 70 missiles, 2,200 Shahed-type drones, and 6,000 guided aerial bombs against Ukraine since Kyiv and Washington agreed on a temporary truce on March 11, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on April 11.
Ukrainian officials agreed to a U.S. proposal for a full 30-day ceasefire during their talks in Jeddah, provided Russia abides by the conditions. Moscow has rejected the deal unless it includes conditions undermining Ukraine's defenses, namely a full halt on foreign military aid.
"From March 11 to April 11, Russia shot at Ukraine almost 70 missiles of various types, over 2,200 Shahed drones, and more than 6,000 guided aerial bombs," Sybiha said on X.
"These were Russian responses to peace proposals. This is typical of Russia: lying, manipulating, and continuing terror."
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