MOSCOW, Nov 5 (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy Kirill Dmitriev will attend a White House event hosted by US first lady Melania Trump on Thursday, and also meet with US administration officials, two people familiar with his plans said.
The visit will mark the first in-person contact between Russian and US officials since midterm elections in which Democrats secured control of both the US Senate and the House of Representatives in a blow to President Donald Trump.
The Democratic majority in Congress from January is widely expected to push for more aid for Ukraine and to question several of the Republican Trump administration’s decisions, such as a diesel deal with Russia and the easing of some sanctions.
The Kremlin has said that it hopes Trump will continue his peacemaking efforts despite the Republican Party’s defeat.
The Kremlin added that work was under way to prepare a meeting between Putin, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit on November 18 to 19 in Shenzhen,China.
Dmitriev’s visit precedes a trilateral meeting of US, Russian and Ukrainian officials in Abu Dhabi on November 10, at which the US negotiators will seek progress towards ending the war, which is nearing the five-year mark.
The White House said in a statement that Melania Trump would deliver remarks on a six-day local ceasefire around the Russian-held town of Oleshky, which she helped mediate.
Dmitriev previously met with Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, in the White House in 2025. Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, did not invite any Russian officials to the White House.
One of those familiar with Dmitriev’s plans said that a humanitarian track in his US contacts and his interaction with Melania Trump’s team had emerged as an important area of negotiations alongside the economy and business deals.
Dmitriev has been involved in facilitating the release of American detainees in Russia, the reunification of Ukrainian children with their families, and the humanitarian operation in Oleshky.
The source said Russia and the US had a mutual interest in continuing these humanitarian efforts.
(Reporting by Reuters in Moscow; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
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