Trump Envoy's Controversial Call with Putin Adviser
President Donald Trump's special envoy for Russia, Steve Witkoff, provided strategic advice to a senior aide of Vladimir Putin on how the Russian leader should approach Trump with a peace proposal aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. This revelation comes from a transcript of an October 14th phone call published by Bloomberg News, which the White House has not disputed.
According to the transcript, Witkoff advised Putin's foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov, that Putin should initiate a call with Trump to congratulate him on the recent Gaza ceasefire deal. Witkoff suggested this would create a positive opening, stating that Putin should express Russian support for the agreement and respect for Trump as a 'man of peace.' 'From that, it's going to be a really good call,' Witkoff reportedly said.
The Backchannel Peace Negotiations
The leaked conversation occurred just one day after Trump's triumphant visit to the Middle East celebrating the Gaza deal. During the call, Witkoff further proposed that Putin should reference a 'very similar 20-point plan to peace' that he and Ushakov had discussed, suggesting it could 'move the needle a little bit.' He also recommended scheduling the Trump-Putin call before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's planned visit to the White House later that week.
The strategy appeared to unfold as suggested. Trump and Putin spoke on October 16th, a day before Zelenskyy's White House meeting on October 17th. Shortly after his talks with the Ukrainian leader, Trump publicly stated that Ukraine and Russia should 'stop where they are' on the battlefield—a position that would effectively require Ukraine to concede territory seized by Russian forces.
Reactions and a 28-Point Plan Leaks
The disclosure of the backchannel advice sparked immediate criticism. U.S. Representative Don Bacon, a Republican from Nebraska, condemned Witkoff's actions, stating on social media that the envoy 'favors the Russians' and should be fired. 'Would a Russian paid agent do less than he?' Bacon questioned.
Subsequent reporting by Bloomberg, based on another recorded call from October 29th, revealed deeper coordination. In that conversation, Ushakov and Kirill Dmitriev—a close Putin adviser on Ukraine—debated how strongly to push Moscow's demands in a prospective peace plan. This exchange happened soon after Dmitriev had traveled to Florida for talks with Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, which centered on creating a framework for a 28-point peace plan.
The original version of this plan, which became public last week, was seen as heavily favoring Russian interests. Its provisions reportedly included Ukraine ceding the entire Donbas region to Russia, a dramatic reduction in the size of its military, and a guarantee that Europe would block Ukraine from ever joining the NATO alliance.
In response to the growing controversy, the White House defended its envoy. 'This story proves one thing: Special Envoy Witkoff talks to officials in both Russia and Ukraine nearly every day to achieve peace, which is exactly what President Trump appointed him to do,' said White House communications director Steven Cheung.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted the proposal was authored by the United States with input from both sides, countering claims it was a Russian wish list. On Tuesday, Trump announced he was sending Witkoff to meet with Putin and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll to meet with Ukrainian officials, signaling a continued push for a negotiated settlement to the conflict.
