The Kremlin has denied reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin sidelined President Donald Trump’s envoy to Russia and Ukraine, retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, from peace talks in Saudi Arabia to end the 3-year-old war with Ukraine, according to Russian state news outlet RIA Novosti.
Newsweek reached out to the U.S. State Department for comment on Friday via email outside normal business hours.
Why It Matters
Although Kellogg was appointed by Trump to negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war, he has not been part of recent peace talks with Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Jeddah and Riyadh. His last involvement was when he visited Kyiv in February.
An unidentified Russian official told NBC News that Putin did not want Kellogg to attend U.S.-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia because he is too “pro-Ukraine.” Kellogg was previously critical of the Biden administration’s approach to resolving the war and pushed for peace through a “comprehensive and verifiable deal with security guarantees.”
What To Know
The Kremlin has refuted the NBC News report alleging that Kellogg had been removed from peace talks with Ukraine at Russia’s request and said that it does not interfere in U.S. internal affairs.
“No, I cannot confirm,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists. “It would probably be absurd to think that the Russian side could interfere in American internal affairs; we have no intention whatsoever. And we are saying that any relations should be built on the basis of mutual respect.
“And based on mutual investment, of course, we will not interfere in the internal affairs of the Americans. It is their decision who to appoint, who not to appoint, and so on. Therefore, no, I cannot confirm this at all.”
The unidentified Russian official told NBC News that “Kellogg is a former American general, too close to Ukraine. Not our kind of person, not of the caliber we are looking for.”
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz represented Washington at the meeting with Ukraine in Saudi Arabia.
An unnamed Trump administration official also commented on Kellogg’s role in the peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, telling Politico that his “role is very much in question. It’s not clear why the president won’t make a final call on this. There are already too many principals, plus Witkoff, trying to play the hero on ending the war. Kellogg is limping along, adding to the confusion about who does what.”
Peskov said that Steve Witkoff, Trump’s envoy to the Middle East, visited Putin in Moscow on March 13. Kellogg commented on Witkoff’s scheduled visit earlier this week, saying that it “made a lot of sense strategically to say, ‘OK, Steve, you run this lane really hard, and I’ll run this lane really hard.’ We’re closely aligned, talking about it, comparing notes, and providing that information.”
Neither Trump nor Kellogg has commented on the reports that the retired lieutenant army general has been “sidelined” in peace talks.
What People Are Saying
Michael Weiss, an editor at the Insider, wrote about Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov statement to NBC News on X, formerly Twitter: “What he means by this is: We can’t roll him like we can Witkoff. ‘Kellogg is a former American general, too close to Ukraine. Not our kind of person, not of the caliber we are looking for.'”
Alex Plitsas, a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, on X: “As I said, Putin has been trying to pick our negotiators to seek an advantage. LTG Kellogg is the most experienced and seasoned. He also commanded Special Operations Command Europe and is wise to Putin’s nonsense.”
Then-President-elect Donald Trump, on Truth Social in November when he nominated retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg to be envoy to Russia and Ukraine: “He was with me right from the beginning! Together, we will secure PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH, and Make America, and the World, SAFE AGAIN!”
What Happens Next
It is unclear what Kellogg’s role in the Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations will be as Putin’s aide said the Kremlin rejected Trump’s proposed 30-day ceasefire.
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