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Russian President Vladimir Putin met U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner in the Kremlin on Tuesday for discussions on potential ways to end the deadliest European conflict since World War Two. Ahead of the meeting, Putin warned that Europe would face swift defeat in any war with Russia and rejected European counter-proposals on Ukraine as unacceptable. Greeting the visitors warmly, Putin expressed his pleasure at seeing them, while Witkoff commented on the beauty of Moscow after walking with Kushner and Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev on Red Square. Dmitriev and Putin aide Yuri Ushakov also joined the talks. Trump has repeatedly stated his desire to end the war, though previous efforts—including a summit with Putin in Alaska and meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy—have not achieved peace. Tensions rose after a leaked set of 28 U.S. draft proposals appeared to concede to Moscow’s demands, prompting new European counter-plans and, later, an “updated and refined peace framework” announced by the United States and Ukraine in Geneva