U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump's son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner, are visiting Moscow and Kyiv over the weekend in an effort to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. "We have an idea for peace," Trump told reporters on Friday.

"I sent Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, two great negotiators. They've done a great job, and we sent them over to see whether or not we can get something done. And there may be a good chance that we'll do it," he said. Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy confirmed the news in a post on X.

"Today, it has been clearly established that U.S. envoys will be in Ukraine and Russia in the coming days. We have the details from the U.S. President’s team. We discussed today that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will visit Moscow and then Kyiv on Sunday.

We are preparing for the visit," Zelenskyy wrote. TRUMP ANNOUNCES SURPRISE THREE-DAY CEASEFIRE IN RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR The pair will visit Russia first on Saturday and, according to Russian state-affiliated media outlet Tass, have already landed in Moscow.

Photos showed Kushner and Witkoff greeted by Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev shortly after landing in Moscow. Kushner and Witkoff are expected to later travel to Kyiv on Sunday, Zelenskyy confirmed. Zelenskyy also said that Ukraine will work to keep Russian airspace safe during the Americans’ visit.

CIA DIRECTOR JOHN RATCLIFFE MET WITH RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS IN VISIT TO MOSCOW, KREMLIN SAYS "Just as we did during previous diplomatic visits by the American side, we will ensure the normal functioning of Russian airspace so that the negotiators can arrive safely.

We are looking out for them, not for Russia. There will be no air strikes from our side, and Russia must do the same, ensuring there are no air strikes from its side for the time needed to hold these talks and handle the logistical matters related to this American visit," he wrote on X.

ZELENSKYY CONGRATULATES TRUMP ON TURNING 80 IN BIRTHDAY CALL, VOWS MORE UKRAINE PEACE TALKS AT G7 ON TUESDAY "Our goal is to make the visit and the talks with the U.S. side as constructive and substantive as possible. We need to look for real options for how to move this war toward an end.

We will see what proposals Steve and Jared bring and what they are told in Moscow in response," the Ukrainian president concluded. Zelenskyy, in a subsequent Saturday morning post on X, said he had already communicated with Witkoff and Kushner ahead of their planned Sunday meeting.

"I have just spoken with the U.S. President’s envoys. They have already begun working with the Russian side today. From the moment of this conversation, we are ready to observe a ceasefire in airstrikes against the cities involved in the negotiation process.

From now through the end of Saturday, as well as on Sunday and Monday, Ukraine is ready to refrain from strikes on Moscow, and we expect the Russians to do the same regarding Kyiv," he wrote. "Today, I also received reports from Defense Minister Yevhenii Khmara and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Mykhailo Drapatyi on the situation at the front, the dynamics of threats in Ukraine’s airspace, our steps, and active defensive operations.

I am grateful to every one of our warriors for effectively defending Ukraine’s positions," Zelenskyy's post continued. "On the diplomatic track, our actions must be, and will be, just as strong and effective – one hundred percent. The plan for tomorrow’s diplomatic engagements in Kyiv, involving the U.

S. team, has been approved. We are waiting for Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and are ready for a substantive conversation. Thank you to everyone who stands with Ukraine!" Zelenskyy concluded. Zelenskyy’s Friday message came the same day that a Russian drone strike targeted the Security Service of Ukraine’s headquarters in Ukraine, Zelenskyy wrote in a public message on the app Telegram.

RUSSIA LAUNCHES BALLISTIC MISSILE ATTACK ON KYIV HOURS AFTER ZELENSKYY WARNS OF MAJOR STRIKE Zelenskyy alleged the strike directly targeted the head of the Security Service's office. He also wrote that he was directing the head, Oleksandr Poklad, to prepare a retaliatory strike.

"I gave Poklad the task of adequately, noticeably and, if possible, mirroring the Russians' response to this attack, when everything is prepared. Our military will support this response. Glory to Ukraine!" he wrote. PUTIN UNLEASHES NEW FURY ON UKRAINE AS REPORT EXPOSES FEAR HANGING OVER WAR’S END At least nine people were injured in the explosion, Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko also wrote on Telegram.

The visit also comes just one day after German officials formally accused Russia of attempting an explosive drone attack on a major airport in Germany. RUSSIA’S STRIKES NEAR MOLDOVA RAISE ALARM OVER PUTIN’S PLANS FOR EUROPE’S EASTERN FLANK "The attack on the aircraft in Leipzig was concrete; it could have triggered a catastrophe had it succeeded.

The attacker was, at most, covert, but even here there is now certainty: The German government has named Russia as the mastermind. Patterns of attack, police investigations, and intelligence findings prove Russian responsibility for the drone attack," Stefan Kornelius, a spokesperson for the German federal government, wrote Friday.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP Fox News Digital contacted the White House and the foreign ministries for Russia, Ukraine and Germany for further comment.

US, allies push IAEA board to report Iran to UN Security Council The United States, Britain, France and Germany are seeking a resolution by the UN nuclear watchdog's board next week reporting Iran to the UN Security Council for the first time in 20 years, according to diplomats and the proposed text seen by Reuters.

If passed, the resolution would follow up on one adopted on June 12 of last year declaring Iran in breach of its non-proliferation obligations for not fully cooperating with an investigation into uranium traces found at undeclared sites. Israel started bombing Iran's nuclear facilities the next day, soon joined by the US Iran's uranium-enrichment plants were destroyed or badly damaged.

Iran has not let International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors return to the bombed sites since then or verify what remains of its stocks of enriched uranium, some of which was enriched to up to 60 percent purity, a short step from weapons grade.

‘Small potatoes’: US President Trump downplays war on Iran The president’s remarks could signal a new strategy towards the conflict, focused on minimising its impact. As the United States and Israel’s war on Iran enters its seventh month with no clear end in sight, President Donald Trump has become the latest US official to downplay the conflict.

On Friday, Trump said the conflict, which has resulted in the deaths of 18 US service members and a spike in global energy prices, is “small potatoes”. Recommended Storieslist of 3 items - list 1 of 3How much oil is going through Hormuz? Why data doesn’t match US claims - list 2 of 3Iran war: Why US midterms could be a pivotal moment - list 3 of 3‘Things happen’: How Vance’s comment on Iran wedding strike fits US pattern “It’s not a big thing,” Trump said, comparing strikes on Iran with other US military campaigns, including the January 3 operation to abduct Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

“We did Venezuela, and we did this. In Venezuela, we lost nobody. In this, we lost 18 people.” His remarks came at an Oval Office signing event, where reporters asked him to weigh in on remarks from Vice President JD Vance. A day earlier, at a White House news briefing, Vance appeared to suggest the conflict had cooled, despite a recent exchange of intense fire between US and Iranian forces.

“I wouldn’t call it a war. Right now, there is no active shooting,” Vance said, arguing that major combat operations only lasted six weeks. He then added, “I recognise there have been places where this has flared up.” Trump on Friday told reporters there was “a lot of truth” to what Vance said.

He opted to brand the fighting as a “military conflict”. “We do intermittent strikes,” Trump said, adding: “We’re not fighting right now. There’s no fighting. We’re taking out a lot of oil. We control the Hormuz Strait. We control it very strongly.” Since the war began on February 28, Trump has used various phrases to avoid calling the conflict a war.

In the past, he has called the fighting with Iran a “little skirmish”, a “little detour” and a “little excursion, a couple of weeks, few weeks of excursion”. “It’s an excursion that will keep us out of a war,” Trump said in March. Experts say such terminology is likely strategic.

The Trump administration has faced pushback for not seeking congressional approval before launching its strikes on Iran. The US Constitution grants Congress the exclusive power to declare war, though successive presidencies have taken unilateral military actions without the legislature’s approval.

Legal scholars have repeatedly questioned the legality of those manoeuvres. In June, both chambers of Congress passed a war powers resolution, calling on Trump to either stop his military campaign against Iran or seek congressional authorisation for it.

The resolution was largely symbolic, though it did signal growing bipartisan opposition to Trump’s war on Iran. As the conflict enters its seventh month, it remains widely unpopular in the US. A poll released on Monday by the Reuters news agency and the research firm Ipsos found that nearly six in 10 US adults disapproved of the military strikes on Iran.

As the midterm elections approach in November, and peace talks remain deadlocked, the president’s remarks appear designed to minimise the conflict’s impact across the world. The war has led to attacks across the Middle East, and fuel prices remain high.

In the US, the American Automobile Association (AAA) says the average fuel price is $4.15 per gallon (3.8 litres), up nearly a dollar from last year. The Trump administration, however, has long argued the war and its effects would be short-term. It has also signalled that it intends to double down on its economic pressure campaign against Iran, which has long faced US sanctions.

In August, Trump pledged on Truth Social to pursue the “MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY”. This week, his administration announced new sanctions aimed at cutting off the country’s access to the international financial system.

On Friday, Trump also did not rule out further attacks, suggesting the US may “very soon” strike Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain, a military site near the Natanz uranium enrichment facility. Natanz was bombed in June 2025 and again during the current war. A recent exchange of strikes this month resulted in Iran firing on US military bases across the Middle East.

The US, meanwhile, was accused by the Iranian government of bombing a wedding celebration in the coastal city of Sirik, killing at least four people. While the future of the conflict is uncertain, Trump said he was pleased with its progress. “I don’t think it matters what you call it,” Trump said.

“What matters is you’ve had tremendous success.

Trump backs Vance’s Iran stance, calls months-long fighting a ‘military conflict’ WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump on Friday, September 4, backed Vice President JD Vance’s decision not to describe the months-long US conflict with Iran as a 'war,' instead calling it a 'military conflict.

' Trump said the fighting had become intermittent and described the conflict as 'small potatoes' for the United States. The president also defended the length of US military deployments, saying the operation had prevented Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Trump backs Vance on Iran war label When asked about Vance’s comments a day earlier, Trump said he understood the vice president's position and argued that the level of fighting did not warrant calling the conflict a war. “I can understand what he’s saying,” Trump said.

“I call it a military conflict because it’s small potatoes for us. It's not a big thing.” Trump said the US strikes against Iran had become intermittent and noted that there had been periods without active fighting. He compared the 18 US service members killed in the conflict with American casualties in previous wars, including Vietnam and Afghanistan.

JUST IN: President Trump agrees with VP JD Vance in refusing to call the months-long U.S. military action in Iran a war, instead calling it a "military conflict" and describing the whole thing as "small potatoes" to the United States.— Fox News (@FoxNews) September 4, 2026 "Well, I'll tell you what.

A lot of people… pic.twitter.com/sV1O7GjLC7 However, when a reporter challenged Trump over describing the fighting as 'small potatoes' despite the deaths and 'record-long' deployments, the president defended the military's continued presence. Trump replied seemingly furious, “Why is it record-long?

So, how long were we in Vietnam? We were in five months there (Iran), and you know what we did in five months? They're not going to have a nuclear weapon. That's what we did, because if they did you probably wouldn’t be standing here.” .@POTUS schools a very rude Fake News hack on Iran: "Iran will not have a nuclear weapon — because if they did, you probably wouldn't be standing here very long.

" pic.twitter.com/TtvVkwRm8C— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 4, 2026 Trump also defended the length of the deployments by comparing them with the duration and casualties of earlier US conflicts. The president said that the military had repeatedly targeted Iranian radar and other capabilities and maintained that US forces had significantly weakened Iran's ability to threaten the region.

Trump also pointed to operations involving the Strait of Hormuz, saying US forces had removed mines from the waterway and were helping ships move through the strategic route. JD Vance rejects war label as Iran fighting continues Vance had previously rejected the description of the conflict as a 'war' during a White House briefing on Thursday, September 3, when he was asked whether the fighting could be over before the November midterm elections.

“I wouldn’t call it a war,” Vance said. “Right now, there is no active shooting.” COLLINS: Will this war be over by the midterm elections?— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 3, 2026 JD VANCE: I wouldn't call it a war pic.twitter.com/CH2wot7pW1 Vance acknowledged that fighting had recently “flared up” but said major combat operations were not currently underway.

He also declined to predict when the conflict would end, saying the administration could not set an artificial deadline while Iran continued attacking commercial shipping. “You’re asking me a question like when will the Iranians stop shooting at ships?

” Vance said. “I think the reality is I don’t know the answer to that question. You would have to ask the Iranians.” Vice President JD Vance on Iran:— Tabz (@TabzLIVE) September 3, 2026 When you ask, "When will this war end?" you're asking me a question like, "When will the Iranians stop shooting at ships?

" I don’t know the answer to that question. You would have to ask the Iranians. pic.twitter.com/qHtsyn3BdT The comments came after a renewed round of fighting this week. On Tuesday, September 1, the US military carried out roughly 100 strikes against Iranian targets, which the administration said were in response to threats against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has continued retaliatory attacks in the region, including an attack on US Gulf ally Kuwait.