US, Russia, Ukraine to continue peace talks at technical level: Witkoff

US special envoy Steve Witkoff said Wednesday that peace efforts involving Russia, Ukraine and European leaders had been "constructive," with trilateral talks set to continue at the technical level.

In a statement on US social media platform X, Witkoff said the discussions were part of President Donald Trump's efforts to end the war in Ukraine.

Witkoff said he attended meetings in Oslo and St. Petersburg in person, while Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner participated virtually.

In St. Petersburg, Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin to build on progress made during earlier talks in Oslo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders.

He said the meeting focused on a framework for peace and included an expression of gratitude to Putin for releasing American citizen Stephen Hubbard.

"These discussions were constructive, and will continue with trilateral talks between the United States, Russia, and Ukraine at the technical level," Witkoff said.

The US envoy acknowledged that significant work remained before an agreement could be reached.

"While there is still important work left to do, President Trump remains committed to seeing this war end and achieving a comprehensive, durable peace that will provide security and prosperity for generations to come," he said.

Separately, Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov said Wednesday that the war in Ukraine was moving closer to a settlement.

However, Ushakov cautioned that it remained difficult to assess how close the parties were to reaching an agreement.