President Vladimir Putin’s economic cooperation envoy has arrived in the United States for talks, just days after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed sanctions on two Russian oil giants, CNN reported Friday, citing sources with knowledge of the visit.
Kirill Dmitriev’s second U.S. visit since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 is reportedly intended “to continue discussions about the U.S.-Russia relationship.”
Axios, citing two sources with knowledge of the plans, reported that Dmitriev is expected to meet White House envoy Steve Witkoff in Miami on Saturday.
Dmitriev previously met with Witkoff in April, when the U.S. government temporarily lifted sanctions against the Russian envoy to allow the State Department to grant him a visa.
The latest trip comes amid heightened tensions following Trump’s decision to sanction Russia’s oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil, as well as to cancel a planned summit with Putin after failing to secure progress on a ceasefire in Ukraine.
The Kremlin has dismissed the sanctions as political pressure.
Dmitriev’s visit also coincides with U.S. congressional interest in reopening dialogue with Russia.
Earlier in October, Florida congresswoman and Trump ally Anna Paulina Luna said she would meet Dmitriev “later this month” without specifying the agenda.
Last week, Dmitriev proposed a so-called Putin-Trump Tunnel between Alaska and Russia as a “symbol of unity,” suggesting Elon Musk’s Boring Company could build the $8 billion undersea link in eight years.
Dmitriev, who heads the Russian Direct Investment Fund, has not commented on his U.S. visit on his social media accounts.
