The third one is not superfluous: Steve Witkoff flew to Russia on April 11.

On Friday, April 11, it became known that the special envoy of the American leader, Steve Witkoff, flew to Russia, where he is supposed to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Witkoff's arrival in Russia was confirmed by the Kremlin. This is the third visit by Trump's special envoy since February. Details, as well as information about the possible goals of the meeting with the Russian leader, are available in the Izvestia article.

Witkoff's visit to Russia: what is known

On Friday, April 11, the American news website Axios, citing a source, reported that the special envoy of US President Donald Trump flew to Russia, where he is expected to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to the publication, this will be the third meeting between Witkoff and Putin, it takes place after the second round of talks between Russia and the United States in Istanbul, which ended on April 10.

As Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the Russian president, reported yesterday, the normalization of diplomatic relations between the two countries was discussed exclusively in Istanbul, the topic of the Ukrainian settlement was not raised at the talks.

Special diplomatic mission: Russia and the United States are moving away from Biden's legacy

Moscow and Washington discussed the restoration of embassy staff and direct flights, and exchanged prisoners.

As for Witkoff's visit to Russia, according to the American website, Donald Trump is allegedly disappointed that the negotiations that have been held recently have not led to significant results in resolving the conflict in Ukraine. It is also reported that if a truce is not reached by the end of the month, the United States may impose new sanctions on Russia. However, official Washington has not yet commented on what is happening.

According to the Flightradar24 tracking service, an American aircraft of the same type as Steve Witkoff's (Gulfstream G650ER) landed in St. Petersburg at about 09:20 Moscow time. According to Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, Witkoff did fly to Russia, but there was no confirmation of his meeting with Vladimir Putin.

"If there is, we will inform you," Peskov told reporters when asked if a meeting was planned between the Russian president and the US special envoy.

On Saturday, April 12, Witkoff is scheduled to meet with high-ranking Iranian representatives in Oman.

When Steve Witkoff came to Russia

The last meeting between Steve Witkoff and Vladimir Putin took place on March 13. Then it was reported that it was positive and productive. It is known that the special envoy provided the Russian side with additional information on Ukraine, and Vladimir Putin, according to Dmitry Peskov, transmitted information and additional signals to Trump through Witkoff.

Steve Witkoff also visited Russia in early February. The purpose of the visit was to negotiate the exchange of American Mark Vogel, who was convicted of drug smuggling and possession.

What is known about Steve Witkoff, friendship with Donald Trump

Steve Witkoff is US President Donald Trump's special envoy for the Middle East. The politician was born on March 15, 1957 and graduated from Hofstra Private University in 1983. He is a lawyer by education.

For a long time, Witkoff built an entrepreneurial career and worked in the real estate industry. In 1997, he founded the Witkoff Group, which has become a market leader in the ownership and development of first-class residential, hotel, office, retail and other projects.

In 2020, Witkoff joined the industry group of the Great American Economic Revival, which was created by Donald Trump during his first presidential term (2017-2021) in order to combat the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On November 9, 2024, Witkoff was elected co-chairman of the presidential committee for the inauguration of Donald Trump, and just three days later, on the 12th, he was appointed US special Envoy to the Middle East. In addition, Donald Trump involved Witkoff in resolving the conflict in Ukraine.

The friendship between Witkoff and Trump began back in the 1980s. Witkoff made donations to the president's campaign fund, testified at the civil fraud trial against Trump, and was with him during the assassination attempt on September 15, 2024.