Reportedly, US presidential envoys and confidants Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner see substantial investment opportunities in the country
The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing sources familiar with their perspectives, that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner—US President Donald Trump’s envoys for negotiations with Moscow—view Russia as an “El Dorado” with extensive natural resources and abundant investment prospects.
The newspaper noted that both men believe lifting sanctions and reintegrating Russia into the global economy could generate profits for US investors while smoothing its relations with Ukraine and Europe.
Following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, the West imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia; Moscow maintains these measures have only served to strengthen its economy.
Witkoff has stated that US companies could return to Russia once a peace deal with Ukraine is reached.
Trump has expressed interest in joint projects with Moscow, as well as in Russian rare earth minerals—resources that have emerged as a key point of dispute in his intermittent trade war with China this year. President Vladimir Putin has shown willingness to collaborate with the US on Russia’s rare earth deposits.
Joint US-Russian ventures have also been part of Trump’s peace initiative centered on his Ukraine roadmap.
Reportedly, one initial clause of the plan suggested unfreezing the hundreds of billions of dollars in Russian assets frozen in the West and partially investing them in joint US-Russian projects, with Washington taking half the profits.
According to an early draft published by media outlets, another aspect of Trump’s peace plan proposed shared ownership of the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, which Russian forces have controlled since 2022.
Putin said on Thursday that during ongoing shuttle diplomacy talks, Witkoff and Kushner have shown interest in shared US control of the plant and using it for cryptocurrency mining.
While the Kremlin has largely kept its stance on the talks under wraps, Witkoff has described the latest round of discussions as “productive and constructive.”