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Keith Kellogg and President Volodymyr Zelensky were expected to discuss possible paths to ending the war and ways to defuse tensions between Washington and Kyiv.
Feb. 20, 2025Updated 2:10 p.m. ET
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine met with President Trump’s special envoy in Kyiv on Thursday — a day after a public feud between the Ukrainian and American leaders threatened to derail diplomatic efforts toward peace talks.
The meeting with Keith Kellogg, the special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, was meant to discuss paths to ending the war that would safeguard Ukraine’s interests. There was also hope that it might help defuse tensions between Washington and Kyiv after Mr. Trump labeled Mr. Zelensky a “dictator” and the Ukrainian president accused him of echoing Russian propaganda.
Whether any progress was made remains unclear: a news conference scheduled for after the meeting was canceled at the request of the United States, according to Mr. Zelensky’s office, although Mr. Kellogg and the Ukrainian leader appeared together for photos.
Reporters who had gathered for the news conference were told to go home. The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv did not immediately comment.
“It is a bad signal,” Solomiia Bobrovska, a member of the defense and intelligence committee of Parliament, said in a phone interview, referring to the canceled news conference.
Mr. Zelensky later wrote on social media that he had a “productive meeting” with Mr. Kellogg, in which they discussed the situation on the battlefield, the return of prisoners of war and security guarantees for Ukraine as part of a peace deal. “Strong Ukraine-U.S. relations benefit the entire world,” Mr. Zelensky said.
