U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Jared Kushner, has questioned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s claim that Russian forces could capture the entire Donbas within a few months.
According to The New York Times, Kushner made the remarks during a meeting in Moscow with Putin on September 5, alongside fellow U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff.
During the meeting at the Kremlin, Putin claimed that Russian forces could take control of the entire Donbas within several months. He also said that Russia was prepared to strike Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
Kushner challenged that assessment, telling Putin: “With all due respect, you told us the same thing a year ago. What are the chances that we’ll be back here a year from now and you’ll tell us the same thing again? Maybe we shouldn’t lose a year?” according to the NYT report.
The territorial issue in Donbas remains one of the main points of disagreement in U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to revive negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
Kushner later said that Putin had presented the territorial line Moscow wants to reach, while Ukraine is not prepared to withdraw to that line. He said Washington is seeking a “creative solution” to the dispute.
