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White House Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Norway today before traveling to Russia to further negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a change from past visits, where he has often prioritized meeting with President Putin first. This comes amidst increased European-U.S. tensions and an ongoing diplomatic row between Ukraine and the U.S., with both being centered around restricted military and operational aid to Ukraine and U.S. President Donald J. Trump’s increasing characterization of Russia as the more responsible actor in the war, and the U.S.’s increased pressure on Ukraine to take concessions that they deem to be out of the question (particularly territorial concessions).