Morning opening: Witkoff meets Putin in St Petersburg for talks on Ukraine
Jakub Krupa
US special envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Saint Petersburg early morning for talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin about Ukraine, a day after holding discussions with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the leaders of Norway and Finland.
Witkoff was met at Pulkovo Airport by the Kremlin’s advisor for international economic cooperation, Kirill Dmitriev.
Let’s see how much of the positive tone expressed by Zelenskyy and the two European leaders after yesterday’s talks will hold at the end of the day.
But managing out expectations, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said he “didn’t know if any agreement will be reached today,” Russian news agency Interfax said.
Elsewhere, I will be looking for updates from France and Italy, as both countries step up their response to recent protests and riots that disrupted everyday life.
Lots to cover.
It’s Wednesday, 21 October 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Ukraine's anti-corruption police search National Bank premises
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s anti-corruption police said that detectives were searching the premises of the National Bank of Ukraine and also the home address of one of the central bank’s employees, Reuters reported.
The anti-corruption police said in a statement on the Telegram app that no one has been detained or issued a suspicion notice. The central bank did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Morning opening: Witkoff meets Putin in St Petersburg for talks on Ukraine
Jakub Krupa
US special envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Saint Petersburg early morning for talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin about Ukraine, a day after holding discussions with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the leaders of Norway and Finland.
Witkoff was met at Pulkovo Airport by the Kremlin’s advisor for international economic cooperation, Kirill Dmitriev.
Let’s see how much of the positive tone expressed by Zelenskyy and the two European leaders after yesterday’s talks will hold at the end of the day.
But managing out expectations, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said he “didn’t know if any agreement will be reached today,” Russian news agency Interfax said.
Elsewhere, I will be looking for updates from France and Italy, as both countries step up their response to recent protests and riots that disrupted everyday life.
Lots to cover.
It’s Wednesday, 21 October 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.