Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
The White House has not denied the content of the transcript, but says it shows, the envoy just did his job.
A newly published transcript, released by Bloomberg, has drawn scrutiny over how Donald Trump’s peace envoy communicated with a senior Kremlin adviser last month.
The outlet reports that the transcript outlines a conversation in which the envoy reportedly suggested how Vladimir Putin might approach the U.S. president on ending the war in Ukraine.
The disclosure surfaced as Trump said he is refining his own proposal and sending his negotiator back to Moscow.
Early guidance
Bloomberg reported that Steve Witkoff spoke with Yuri Ushakov on 14 October, offering suggestions on how Putin could frame a phone call.
Witkoff allegedly proposed that the Russian leader congratulate Trump on the ceasefire in Gaza, as well as express Moscow’s support and highlight “respect for the president as a man of peace.”
According to Bloomberg, the call occurred the day after Trump’s high-profile trip to Israel and Egypt marking the Gaza agreement.
Moscow’s stance
Trump and Putin ultimately spoke the day before Trump met Zelensky on 17 October. Shortly afterward, Trump urged both sides to freeze the frontline – a comment interpreted as accepting Russian-held territory.
Bloomberg also reported on a separate 29 October call between Ushakov and Kirill Dmitriev, a close Putin adviser, discussing how forcefully Moscow should advance its demands.
Dmitriev said: “I don’t think they’ll take exactly our version, but at least it’ll be as close to it as possible.”
The outlet noted that Dmitriev had recently met Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Florida to outline a 28-point plan.
That draft, which leaked last week, leaned heavily toward Russian positions, including requiring Ukraine to relinquish the Donbas and for Europe to bar Kyiv from NATO membership, according to Axios, which first reported on the plan.
Rising criticism
U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican who has opposed Trump’s position on Ukraine, argued on social media that the recording revealed pro-Russian leanings.
“He cannot be trusted to lead these negotiations. Would a Russian paid agent do less than he? He should be fired,” Bacon claimed.
Bloomberg said it reviewed an audio copy of the call but did not disclose how it obtained it.
Other outlets, including The Express, said they could not independently verify the transcript.
During the exchange, Witkoff floated the idea of a Trump–Putin call before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s White House visit.
Ushakov replied that Putin “will congratulate” Trump and would say “Mr. Trump is a real peace man.”
White House rebuttal
The White House has not denied the content of the transcript.
However, White House communications director Steven Cheung said in a statement cited by Newsweek, that the transcript only showed Witkoff “talks to officials in both Russia and Ukraine nearly every day to achieve peace.”
Trump said Tuesday he is sending Army Secretary Dan Driscoll to Kyiv while Witkoff meets Putin.
Sources: Bloomberg News, public statements, social media posts, Axios, The Express, Newsweek
