Putin meets US envoy Witkoff ahead of sanctions deadline

MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin met U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow on Wednesday, the Kremlin said, two days ahead of a deadline imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump on Moscow to halt its Ukraine offensive or face fresh sanctions.

Trump, who had boasted he could end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office, has given Russia until tomorrow to make progress towards peace or face new penalties.

But three rounds of Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul have failed to make headway on a ceasefire, with the two sides far apart.

Russia has escalated drone and missile attacks against its pro-Western neighbor to a record high and accelerated its advance on the ground.

The Kremlin published video of Putin shaking hands with Witkoff in the Kremlin before the talks. But it provided no further details.

Ahead of the meeting, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged Washington to up its pressure on Moscow to agree to a ceasefire.

The White House has not outlined specific actions it would take against Russia, but Trump has previously threatened to impose "secondary tariffs" targeting Russia's key trade partners, such as China and India.

The move would aim to stifle Russian exports, but would risk significant international disruption.

Trump said on Aug. 5 that he would await the outcome of the Moscow talks before moving ordering any economic retaliation.

"We're going to see what happens," he told reporters. "We'll make that determination at that time."

Without explicitly naming Trump, the Kremlin on Aug. 5 slammed "threats" to hike tariffs on Russia's trading parters as "illegitimate."

Russia's more than three-year campaign on Ukraine has killed tens of thousands of people, destroyed swathes of the country and forced millions to flee their homes.