US envoy Witkoff will travel to Berlin to meet with Zelenskiy and European leaders

By ⁠Steve Holland

WASHINGTON, Dec 12 (Reuters) – U.S. ⁠envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law ⁠Jared Kushner will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and ​European leaders in Berlin this weekend, a ‍U.S. official briefed on the matter said.

Witkoff will also meet with his counterparts from France, Britain and ​Germany on Sunday and Monday, the official added.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report the meeting.

The choice ​to send Witkoff, who has led negotiations ⁠with Ukraine and Russia regarding a U.S. ‌peace proposal, highlights Washington’s growing urgency to bridge remaining ⁠gaps with Kyiv over ​the plan’s terms.

French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime ‌Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz were also expected ‍to attend, the Journal said.

On Thursday, the White House said Trump would only send an official to the meeting if he felt there was enough progress to be made in peace talks.

(Reporting by Steve Holland, Jasper Ward ⁠and Bhargav Acharya; Editing ‌by Chris ⁠Reese)