As Ukraine War Escalates, Witkoff and Kushner Are Focused on Iran
Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are pivotal players at a moment when the posts of U.S. ambassador to Moscow and Kyiv are both vacant. By Anton Troianovski Reporting from Washington July 2, 2026 Russia’s president has said he understands why the Trump administration is “distracted” by Iran. Ukraine’s president has lamented that his country is not the top U.S. priority, telling reporters, “unfortunately, we are in this queue of these wars.” In the meantime, Russia and Ukraine have escalated their attacks on each other’s territory to what experts describe as one of the most dangerous moments since Russia’s invasion began more than four years ago. At the center of the disconnect between the increasing violence in Eastern Europe and the Trump administration’s seeming lack of focus on it are the president’s two main negotiators for both Iran and Ukraine: the special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law. They traveled to Qatar this week for another round of Ira...
