Zelensky sends delegation to meet Trump envoys as he hints at secret US-Russia economic talks

A Ukrainian delegation will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in the United States on Oct. 9 to discuss proposals for an energy and Black Sea ceasefire, President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters on Oct. 8.

The talks come amid growing uncertainty over Trump's latest push to end Russia's war against Ukraine, with officials in both Washington and Moscow casting doubt on the prospects for progress.

"Meetings are expected to take place over two days," Zelensky said. "And we are counting on a European team to join our negotiating group and the American negotiating group."

The Ukrainian delegation will include Foreign Intelligence Service Chief Rustem Umerov, Zelensky's Chief of Staff Kyrylo Budanov, and other senior officials, the president said.

The meeting follows comments by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said on Oct. 8 that ending Russia's war against Ukraine through negotiations was currently unattainable.

Rubio said that the goal remained out of reach because Russia insists on gaining full control over Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast without fighting, a demand Kyiv has rejected.

The latest rounds of peace negotiations have stalled over Moscow's territorial demands. The Kremlin has repeatedly rejected a ceasefire and demanded that Kyiv surrender the partially occupied Donbas, a strategically important region in eastern Ukraine. Moscow is effectively seeking territory that Russian forces have failed to capture militarily.

Ukraine has instead called for a ceasefire along the current front line.

Responding to Rubio, Zelensky said that Washington could not simultaneously discuss future economic projects with Russia while describing diplomacy as being at an impasse.

Asked what kind of economic deals Washington and Moscow might be discussing, Zelensky told reporters that Ukraine "knows a lot" but was not ready to discuss the matter publicly.

"I'm simply not ready to talk about it publicly or in detail," the president said.

The latest diplomatic effort began in early September, when Trump's envoys traveled to Kyiv and Moscow seeking progress before the U.S. midterm elections.

The visits produced one tangible outcome: an agreement in principle to hold a trilateral meeting between Ukraine, Russia, and the U.S.

A month later, however, even that meeting remains uncertain.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on Oct. 7 that there were currently no plans for U.S.-mediated talks between Russia and Ukraine.