Zelensky, U.S. envoys hold Oslo talks as Ukraine claims U.S. missile holdup

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Published – October 21, 2026 03:15 am IST – Oslo

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held talks in Oslo with top U.S. envoys on Tuesday (October 20, 2026) in a bid to get strained relations with Washington "on a more constructive path", Norway said.

"Ukraine is working for peace. I thank our partners for their support!" Mr. Zelensky said in a social media post after his arrival in the Norwegian capital.

Mr. Zelensky handed U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff an award in the Norwegian government's official residence, before posing with Norway's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, according to footage accompanying the Ukrainian leader's post.

Mr. Witkoff's fellow U.S. envoy Jared Kushner — U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law — was also taking part in the negotiations but was doing so remotely because of illness, according to the NTB agency.

Relations between Kyiv and Washington have soured since Mr. Trump partially lifted sanctions to strike a diesel-supply deal with Russia's Vladimir Putin and slammed Mr. Zelensky as a warmonger for Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries.

Mr. Zelensky has accused the United States of deliberately withholding vital intelligence and delaying military aid, saying on Monday (October 19) that Ukraine received no early warning of powerful Russian missile strikes that targeted energy facilities in the capital region.

U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to end Europe's deadliest conflict since World War II have stalled in recent months, as Washington has shifted focus towards the war with Iran.

The Norway talks were set to continue into the evening, Store told reporters, with he and Mr. Zelensky set to give a press conference around 7:15 p.m. (1715 GMT)

"The aim is to put diplomatic efforts on a more constructive path," he said.

Ahead of the meeting, Mr. Zelensky said on Tuesday (October 20) he held "substantive" and "constructive" talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in which he insisted that the U.S. military satellite system Ukraine uses, Starshield, "needs to be restored" and that ballistic missile interceptors "are needed to protect lives".

Mr. Zelensky told U.S. senators on Monday (October 20) that "the Pentagon is delaying the delivery of missiles" already paid for by European countries, and that the shipment was waiting for U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth's signature.

He said several European countries were ready to transfer Patriot interceptor missiles from their own stockpiles but were still awaiting U.S. approval.

The United States has denied making any changes to intelligence sharing with Ukraine, and Mr. Rubio said on Tuesday (October 20) that Washington was not deliberately withholding supplies.

"There's nothing being deliberately denied to Ukraine," Mr. Rubio said while on a trip to India.

"It's simply, it's a balance between our obligations to other partners and frankly our own… requirements for our own facilities as well."

Mr. Trump has also denied ordering a reduction in speeds on the US government-owned and—controlled Starshield network after Elon Musk, whose company SpaceX developed it, said the order could only have come from the White House.

The U.S. leader has accused his counterpart of not trying to resolve the conflict with Russia. "Mr. Zelensky doesn't know what he's talking about," President Trump said on Monday (October 19).

"To be honest, I think it's time for somebody else to negotiate on behalf of Ukraine."

Mr. Trump said he was ready to meet Mr. Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in China next month to discuss denuclearisation, adding that talks could also cover the Ukraine war — fuelling fears in Kyiv that it was being sidelined.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed earlier that "the topic of such a hypothetical has indeed been mentioned" when asked about a Wall Street Journal report on Sunday (October 18) that U.S. President Trump, Russia’s President Putin and China’s President Xi could meet.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said that such a meeting would "only encourage Putin to continue this war".

News outlet Axios reported that Mr. Witkoff would travel from Oslo to Russia to meet Putin.

"We hope that it will be possible to arrange a meeting in the very near future, allowing the American negotiators… Mr. Witkoff to brief President Putin on their contacts with both the Ukrainians and the Europeans," Mr. Peskov told reporters on Tuesday (October 20).

Published – October 21, 2026 03:15 am IST

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Fonte: The Hindu – International