Head of Ukraine's foreign intelligence says he is satisfied with Witkoff's diplomatic work

Viktoriia Shabranska - 21 September, 04:30

Steve Witkoff and Rustem Umierov during the visit of the US president's special envoys to Kyiv on 6 September. Photo: Yuliia Ovsiannikova / Ukrinform / Getty Images

Rustem Umierov, Head of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service (FIS), has refuted claims that the Ukrainian government is dissatisfied with the work of the US President's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff in the negotiation process.

Source: Axios

Quote: "Umierov said the negotiations are under close public and media scrutiny and therefore 'it comes with criticism'.

'Nevertheless, we need to stay focused. Steve has done a great job with us. We do not waste time and stay focused on finding solutions,' he said."

Details: This was Umierov's response to a recent article by The Kyiv Independent, which claimed that the Ukrainian government is becoming increasingly frustrated with Witkoff's diplomatic work. The head of the FIS told Axios that this is not true.

Quote from Umierov: "I believe that the work of American negotiators should be assessed by people who are directly involved in the negotiation process and work closely with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner."

Details: He added that over the past year he has worked daily with Witkoff and Kushner and that they are primarily focused on finding solutions to end the war and securing guarantees of security and prosperity for the Ukrainian people.

Umierov also reported significant progress in the negotiations: "In particular, the number of stumbling blocks reduced from dozens to essentially one or two key issues that remain subject to negotiations."

Background:

On 6 September, Donald Trump's envoys Witkoff and Kushner arrived in Kyiv for the first time, the day after visiting Moscow and holding talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Witkoff said following his visits to Moscow and Kyiv that "substantive progress" has been made, including on scheduling further trilateral talks.
At the same time, The Kyiv Independent reported in its article that both Kyiv and Moscow are questioning Witkoff's role in the negotiation process, with only Trump reportedly unwilling to remove him.
In particular, Ukrainian officials have allegedly expressed doubts about Witkoff's understanding of the causes of the Russia-Ukraine war and his approach to diplomacy, whilst also complaining about his lack of interest in the work, claiming he prefers spending time in restaurants instead.
Conversely, the Kremlin is increasingly accusing Trump's envoy of failing to force Ukraine to cede territory and of not passing information to the US president in a manner that suits Moscow.
Furthermore, the Ukrainian side is dissatisfied with Witkoff's overly accommodating approach towards Putin, whom Trump's envoy has met at least eight times, speaking warmly about these meetings on numerous occasions.
Specifically, during their latest meeting on 5 September, Witkoff said: "After I retire, I'll look back on my meetings with Putin in the Kremlin as some of the best and most unforgettable moments of my life."
Additionally, in 2025 Witkoff noted that he does not consider Russian ruler Vladimir Putin to be a bad person.

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