Putin Envoy to Visit Washington

By Staff, Agencies

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s economic envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, will visit Washington this week.

Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, participated in the meeting with US officials in Saudi Arabia on February 18, where the sides agreed to start normalizing bilateral relations. The meeting was part of US President Donald Trump’s efforts to broker an end to the Ukraine conflict.

According to reports, Dmitriev will meet with Trump’s Ukraine envoy, Steve Witkoff. He will be the first senior Russian official to visit the US since former President Joe Biden suspended diplomatic contacts in 2022. The US Treasury reportedly temporarily lifted sanctions against Dmitriev to allow him to enter the country.

Reacting to the reports about his visit, Dmitriev wrote “maybe” on his X account. “The resistance to US–Russia dialogue is real – driven by entrenched interests and old narratives,” he added. “But what if improved relations are exactly what the world needs for lasting global security and peace?”

On Sunday, Trump threatened to impose “secondary tariffs” on Russia if the countries fail to “make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine.”

Russia has accused Ukraine of violating the mutual pause on attacks on energy infrastructure proposed by Trump during his call with Putin on March 18. Although Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky promised to respect the agreement, Russia has since recorded drone attacks on its fuel depots, as well as a missile strike on a gas metering station.

Moscow has insisted that any future settlement must address the root causes of the conflict, including NATO’s expansion eastward. Russia has demanded that Ukraine drop its plan to join the US-led military bloc and become a permanently neutral state. Moscow has also said Kiev must renounce claims on Crimea and four other regions that have voted to become part of Russia.