US talks with Russia to prevent escalation of conflict in Ukraine – WSJ

Joe Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan has been holding talks with Vladimir Putin’s foreign affairs aide Yuri Ushakov and Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev through confidential channels for the past few months. This was reported by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing sources.


According to the publication, Jake Sullivan is negotiating with the Kremlin to prevent the conflict in Ukraine from escalating further, including the use of nuclear weapons. Settlement of the conflict itself is not among the objectives of the contacts.

WSJ sources said that other senior US officials do not share Sullivan’s desire to remain in contact with Russia because they believe such engagement is counterproductive in the current environment.

Journalists were also told that Sullivan had urged Zelenskyy to send an open signal that would demonstrate Kiev’s readiness to resolve the conflict with Russia.

Earlier, the same Wall Street Journal quoted sources as saying that a number of Western countries were discussing possible terms of peace between Russia and Ukraine in private.