A Russian official said President Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, had a "useful and constructive" conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Wednesday.

Moscow

Russian forces have invaded Ukraine from land, air and sea with strikes causing widespread damage. Global leaders have condemned the move and imposed sanctions.

Ukraine Invasion

U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss the conflict in Ukraine and the possibility of improving relations between the United States and Russia. According to Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov, the talks were described as 'useful and constructive,' though specific details of the messages exchanged between Moscow and the White House were not made public.

The meeting comes as President Trump pressures Russia to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine, threatening economic penalties and severe tariffs on countries purchasing Russian oil. Despite these threats, Russia has continued its military actions in Ukraine, including recent strikes on infrastructure. The effectiveness of the U.S. ultimatum and the outcome of the diplomatic efforts remain uncertain.

Witkoff, Putin had 'useful and constructive conversation'

We begin in Russia, where U.S. Special Envoy Steve Whitkoff has met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. President Trump is trying to pressure Russia to end the war in Ukraine or face economic penalties. But Putin has shrugged off those threats and the president's Friday deadline to agree to a ceasefire. And for more on that meeting, CBS News foreign correspondent Rami Innocencio is live from London. Rami, good to see you. So what did Putin and Whitkoff discuss? And is this deal actually realistic? Yeah, good questions, Tom. Good to see you. The Kremlin is at least portraying that this meeting was positive. Useful and constructive conversation is how one Kremlin foreign policy aide said to state-run TV. His name is Yuri Ushakov. He's also a former Russian ambassador to the U.S. And he said that Putin and Whitkoff did talk about the conflict in Ukraine and that the potential for improving U.S.-Russia ties was also there. He also said that Moscow had received certain, in his words, signals from Trump and that Moscow had transmitted messages back to the White House. As for the detail of those messages, Tom, that right now is not publicly known. But the question out there, does today's meeting change that ultimatum you just talked about from Trump, that he wants Russia to agree to a ceasefire by this Friday, in the next 48 hours? That is an open question. So the clock is still ticking toward more sanctions on Russia. And what is being called as severe tariffs. Those tariffs, though, not aimed at Russia, by the way. They're aimed at countries that buy Russian oil. That is how Moscow is getting a lot of its funding right now. China and India have been doing that and are top importers, despite this Western ban. To your question, is the deal realistic? Let's see what Whitkoff says, if anything, after he debriefs the president. Again, that Trump deadline is this Friday. Yeah, you know, we'll be watching that very closely. But I want you, Rami, to take us inside the head of President Trump. What was his rationale for these new sanction threats on Russia? And how is Russia reacting? Yeah, for sure. Well, his rationale is that Russia is basically still attacking Ukraine and that its attacks, since direct peace talks started in May, three rounds have actually been the heaviest so far in terms of its attacks. And remember, Trump first gave Putin 50 days to agree to a deal. But he cut that to just 10 days, because Russia is still bombarding the country. Even today, Moscow hit a gas facility in southern Odessa. Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, said that this is Moscow basically trying to undermine the heating preparations for those very cold winters. Yesterday, it was a railway hub in northeast Kharkiv that was hit. Last week, it was the capital. So, this is the rationale that Trump really wants to try to put the screws in. But whether this is actually going to work or not, that's still, as we said, the open question. Yeah. So much hanging in the balance. Rami Inocencio, live for us in London. Rami, thank you for that.

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Witkoff, Putin had 'useful and constructive conversation'

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Ukraine Invasion