Trump envoy says U.S. and Russia discussing Black Sea port access as part of potential ceasefire deal

U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, said Sunday that Moscow and Washington are discussing access to Black Sea ports and issues related to Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant as part of their negotiations over the war in Ukraine.

“There are regions that we all know the Russians are focused on. There is a nuclear reactor that supplies quite a bit of electricity to the country of Ukraine. That’s got to be dealt with. There’s access to ports. There’s the Black Sea potential agreement,” Witkoff said in an interview with CBS News.

He noted that reaching a ceasefire deal would require addressing “many elements” but stressed that “no one is throwing their hands up in the air.”

Last week, Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. He told CBS that during the hours-long meeting, they discussed “a lot of specifics.” The envoy also said the talks indicated the U.S. had “narrowed the issues” between Russia and Ukraine and had “made significant progress.”

As part of its efforts, the U.S. proposed a 30-day ceasefire along the entire front line, a proposal Ukraine accepted. However, Russia dismissed it as an attempt to give Ukrainian forces a reprieve.