Cliff Notes
- Donald Trump has restricted retired general Keith Kellogg’s role to only engaging with Ukraine, following Kremlin objections to his participation in peace talks.
- The Kremlin viewed Kellogg as “too pro-Ukraine,” which led to his exclusion from recent high-level discussions aimed at ending the conflict.
- Other officials, including secretary of state Marco Rubio and national security adviser Mike Waltz, are now spearheading the talks instead of Kellogg.
Trump limits remit of envoy after Kremlin request to remove him from peace talks
Donald Trump has appeared to limit the remit of the envoy who was supposed to spearhead his campaign for peace between Ukraine and Russia. Retired general Keith Kellogg was originally US envoy to Russia and Ukraine, but now his remit covers only the Ukrainian side of things, Trump appeared to confirm in a social media post.
The US president said Kellogg will now only deal “directly” with Volodymyr Zelenskyy – amid reports that the Kremlin told Washington it did not want him involved in discussions with Russia at all. Under his initial title, he should have headed, or at least have been heavily involved in, recent peace summits in Saudi Arabia between the US and Russia.
Kellogg will not engage with the Russian side at all
But it now appears Kellogg will not engage with the Russian side at all. The retired general was excluded from high-level talks on ending the war after the Kremlin said it didn’t want him there.Vladimir Putin thought he was too pro-Ukraine, a senior Russian official with direct knowledge of the Kremlin’s thinking told NBC News.
“Kellogg is a former American general, too close to Ukraine. Not our kind of person, not of the calibre we are looking for,” the official said. Talks have instead been spearheaded by secretary of state Marco Rubio, Trump’s envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and his national security adviser Mike Waltz.
