On Tuesday, Bloomberg published the transcript of two phone conversations of Russian President’s aide Yuri Ushakov, in which he discussed the preparation of a plan to end the war in Ukraine with the special envoys of the U.S. and Russian presidents, Steve Whitcoff and Kirill Dmitriev, more than a month ago.
The content of the conversations sparked a flurry of accusations of pro-Russian bias against Whitcoff in the press and social media, but Donald Trump stated on Wednesday that he considers his behavior to be normal negotiation tactics.
Immediately after Bloomberg published the "leaked" wiretap of Yuri Ushakov's conversations with Whitcoff and Kirill Dmitriev, some commentators suggested that this failure could have catastrophic consequences for the participants in the talks.
However, on November 26, Ushakov, in his previous status and position, provided comments about this incident to the Russian press.
In a conversation with the newspaper Kommersant, Ushakov suggested that someone was listening to his conversations via the WhatsApp messenger. According to him, negotiations conducted over secure communication channels almost never become the subject of a "leak" — unless one of the parties organizes it intentionally.
"There are some conversations on WhatsApp that, in general, someone somehow can apparently listen to," Ushakov said.
In an interview with the Russia-1 television channel, Ushakov stated that he does not know who "leaked" his conversation with Whitcoff, and he does not want to comment on the essence of his conversations with the U.S. special envoy.
What exactly was discussed in the conversations
Judging by the published transcripts, Whitcoff was relaying advice to Putin through Ushakov on how to better communicate with Trump: among other things, he recommended praising Trump's successes in ending the war in the Gaza Strip.
The conversation also indicates that organizing a phone call between Trump and Putin before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was to visit the White House in October was proposed by Yuri Ushakov.
Additionally, in his conversation with Ushakov, Dmitriev mentioned that he plans to "informally" convey to the U.S. a document outlining the Russian position on the issue of the war in Ukraine.
"And they can treat it as their own. But I think they won’t take our version entirely, but at least as close to it as possible," Dmitriev allegedly said.
According to publications, this may refer to a "peace plan" consisting of 28 points, which, as world media speculated, could have been drafted based on the Russian position and slightly modified by the American side.
In response to Bloomberg's publication, Donald Trump stated that he sees nothing unusual or reprehensible in the content of Whitcoff's conversation with Ushakov.
"He [Whitcoff] needs to sell this to Ukraine and then sell [the proposals] from Ukraine to Russia. That’s what a dealmaker does: you need to say, ‘Listen, they want this, you need to convince them,’" Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. "This is normal negotiation practice. I think he said the same thing to Ukraine. Each side has to give something and get something in return."
Moreover, Trump mentioned that Steve Whitcoff is likely to fly to Moscow next week, where he will meet with Putin. According to the American leader, Whitcoff may be joined by his son-in-law Jared Kushner.
At the same time, another envoy of the U.S. president, Dan Driscoll, is supposed to head to Kyiv, who, as reported by the press, met with Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
"Steve Whitcoff may go with Jared. I’m not sure Jared will go, but he’s involved in this process, he’s a smart guy, and they will meet with President Putin, I believe, next week in Moscow," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.
Yuri Ushakov confirmed in an interview with the Russia-1 television channel that Russia and the U.S. have preliminarily agreed on Whitcoff's visit to Moscow next week.
Ezra Cohen, who served as Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence in Trump’s first administration, also believes that Whitcoff's conversation with Ushakov falls within the framework of normal negotiation tactics. Therefore, Cohen thinks that the press is overblowing the significance of this leak.
"When you negotiate, you build relationships with both sides, especially if you are a mediator; you work to get both sides to say ‘yes,’" Cohen said in a BBC radio broadcast. "And I think that’s exactly what Steve Whitcoff is doing: he wants to succeed, and for success, the Russians need to be in the right mood, namely, inclined towards an agreement."
“Should be fired”
But some commentators in the English-speaking press and even some American politicians from Donald Trump’s party have stated that, judging by the content of Whitcoff's conversation with Ushakov, Whitcoff is helping the Russians, is unfit as a mediator, and should be removed from the negotiations.
"For those who are against the Russian invasion and want Ukraine to prevail and be a sovereign and democratic country, it is clear that Whitcoff fully supports the Russians. He cannot be trusted to lead these negotiations […] He should be fired," wrote Republican Congressman Don Bacon on social media platform X.
"This is a big problem," supported his colleague, also a Republican, Brian Fitzpatrick. "And this is one of the reasons why these silly side presentations and secret meetings need to stop. Let Secretary of State Marco Rubio do the work, honestly and objectively."
James Matthews, a correspondent for British Sky News in the U.S., also believes that Whitcoff's manner of interacting with the Russians raises serious questions and could lead to catastrophic consequences.
"In these reports, Trump’s envoy very much resembles a useful idiot […] In any other job, Whitcoff would probably have been fired for being irreversibly compromised. At any other time, this would have been seen by everyone as a very big scandal," the British journalist writes.
"But under Donald Trump, scandals are no longer what they used to be," Matthews continues. "The president and his representative continue to mingle with Vladimir Putin. And, judging by Steve Whitcoff's conversations, the balance of power there has shifted less in Trump’s favor than we thought."
The British newspaper Telegraph reminds that Trump deliberately entrusted peace negotiations to outsiders like Whitcoff and Jared Kushner, believing that their fresh perspectives and approaches would achieve what officials and diplomats are unable to do.
Moreover, the newspaper notes that in difficult negotiations with "bandit leaders," one often has to say and promise ugly things, and it would be better for everyone if these things did not make it to the press.
"But even with all these caveats, the fact that Whitcoff is clearly teaching Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s chief foreign policy aide, how to deal with Trump seriously compromises Whitcoff," the Telegraph believes.
"The leak of his phone conversation with Putin’s advisor again raises doubts about the success of peace negotiations and illustrates Whitcoff’s limited understanding of Russia and its leadership," the newspaper continues. "It shows that he may be too close to Moscow and does not understand the threat posed by Putin.
