U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow on Saturday to attempt a new push for peace between Russia and Ukraine, as both sides escalated their aerial attacks. The visit comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed halting airstrikes during the envoys' trip, but Moscow did not publicly respond. With air war intensifying, Russian drone strikes have killed five people and wounded five others at an industrial facility in Ukraine's southern Dnipropetrovsk region. This is Witkoff and Kushner's second visit to Moscow this year, having last met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in January.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
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U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow on Saturday to try to revive a stalled push to end Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russian state news outlets reported.
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outlets → arrive → Ukraine
The visit came as both sides escalated their aerial attacks.
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sides → come → attacks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine would halt airstrikes during the envoys' trip and urged Moscow to do the same.
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Ukraine → say → same
Moscow did not publicly respond to the proposal.
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Moscow → respond → proposal
Washington's push to end the fighting, now in its fifth year, has lost momentum as U.S. attention has been focused for the last six months on its war with Iran.
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attention → end → Iran
The envoys were met at the airport by Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev, Russia's state news agency Tass said.
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agency → meet → Dmitriev
The last known visit to Moscow by Witkoff and Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law, was in January, when they met Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin.
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they → know → Kremlin
They have never visited Kyiv, but Zelenskyy said he was expecting them in the Ukrainian capital on Sunday.
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he → visit → Sunday
With peace efforts stalled, Russia intensified its attacks on Kyiv and other cities with relentless bombardments recently stretching into daylight hours, taking advantage of Ukraine's shortage of air defensive systems.
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Russia → stall → systems
On Friday, a Russian drone hit one of the most important government buildings in Kyiv — the headquarters of Ukraine's Security Service, known as the SBU, which is one of the agencies involved in carrying out deep-strike operations inside Russia.
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which → hit → Russia
The long-range strikes by Ukraine have hit Russian military facilities, oil refineries and e-commerce hubs, seeking to undermine the Kremlin's war effort and economy, as well as make ordinary citizens feel the consequences of the war.
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citizens → hit → war
Zelenskyy links Russian strikes to envoys' visit
The air war between Russia and Ukraine has intensified as troops have struggled to make progress along the 1,250-kilometer (775-mile) front line.
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troops → link → line
Russia has recently been using fast-flying, jet-powered drones, and the recurring wail of air-raid sirens has become part of daily life in Kyiv.
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wail → use → Kyiv
In a social media post on Saturday, Zelenskyy said that Russia had carried out overnight strikes on Kyiv and Boryspil international airports, and linked the attack to the planned U.S. visit.
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Russia → say → visit
"Clearly, these Russian strikes on the airports are a reaction to the discussions and preparations for the possibility of the U.S. side using an aircraft to travel to Ukraine," he said.
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he → use → Ukraine
"We have taken note of this Russian move, and next week we will adjust our operation accordingly regarding Russian airspace, which has become dangerous because of our drones and missiles in the sky.
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which → take → sky
Strikes kill 5 at Ukrainian industrial site
Russian attacks killed five people and wounded five more at an industrial facility in Ukraine's southern Dnipropetrovsk region, local military administration head Oleksandr Hanzha said.
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Hanzha → kill → region
He described those killed as employees at the site.
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He → describe → site
They were simply working their shift.
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They → work → shift
They were doing their job when enemy missiles cut off their lives," he said.
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he → do → lives
A 62-year-old man was wounded and several homes and an apartment building were damaged in a separate attack on the region's Nikopol district, Hanzha said.
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Hanzha → wound → district
In a statement Saturday, Russia's Ministry of Defense said it had carried out strikes on two metallurgical plants in the region, describing them as "major suppliers of metal products for Ukraine's military production.
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it → say → production
A further two people were wounded in an overnight Russian attack on Ukraine's Kyiv region, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of the regional military administration.
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Tkachenko → wound → administration
In the Boryspil district, a fire sparked by a strike partially destroyed a nine-story residential building.
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fire → spark → building
Russian forces also repeatedly struck a shopping center in the southern Mykolaiv region with drones overnight, damaging retail premises and sparking fires, Ukraine's state emergency services said.
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services → strike → fires
A 72-year-old man and a 17-year-old girl were hurt.
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man → hurt → ?
Emergency crews responding to the incident were repeatedly forced to withdraw to safety because of the threat of further strikes, returning whenever conditions allowed, the emergency services said.
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services → respond → strikes
Russia launched ballistic missiles from its Rostov and Voronezh regions and deployed 167 attack drones overnight, Ukraine's air force said.
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force → launch → drones
The drones included Shahed-type aircraft — around half of them jet-powered — as well as Geran and decoy drones.
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half → include → them
Ukrainian air defenses shot down or suppressed 128 drones, according to the air force.
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defenses → shoot → force
Elsewhere, Ukrainian attacks wounded three people, including a 14-year-old girl, in Russia's border region of Belgorod, local officials said.
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officials → wound → Belgorod
In a statement, Russia's Ministry of Defense said that its forces had shot down 53 Ukrainian drones overnight.
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forces → say → drones
