Secret Meeting in Miami: How US and Russian Businesses Prepare a Peace Plan for Ukraine

Meeting of US and Russian Businesspeople in Miami Beach

In October 2023, a closed meeting took place at Steve Witkoff's private villa in Miami Beach between businesspeople from the US and Russia, where plans to end the war in Ukraine and potential commercial projects between the countries were discussed. The meeting included prominent businessmen, such as Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, and Kirill Dmitriev.

During the meeting, Dmitriev presented a plan to use frozen Russian assets worth about $300 billion. Among the proposals discussed were:

• joint exploration of Arctic rare earth metal deposits;
• revival of the Nord Stream gas pipeline;
• secret negotiations between Exxon Mobil and Igor Sechin regarding the Sakhalin project;
• Gentry Beach's negotiations to acquire 9.9% of shares in the Arctic LNG project by Novatek.

Witkoff, who has not visited Ukraine this year, plans a trip to Russia. According to information, sanctioned oligarchs such as Timchenko, Kovalchuk, and the Rotenberg brothers are offering gas concessions in the Sea of Okhotsk. The 28-point Trump plan, which caused a stir in Ukraine, was also discussed. Negotiations between the US and Russia intensified in late November 2023.

“Russia has such vast resources, such enormous spaces of land. If we do all this, and everyone thrives, and everyone is part of this - it naturally becomes a barrier against future conflicts.”

Steve Witkoff

At the same time, Donald Tusk emphasized that “we know this is not about peace. It’s about business.”

This meeting demonstrates how the business environment is choosing ways to restore cooperation, sidelining traditional institutions, and striving to create new opportunities in the context of the Ukrainian conflict.

Discussions between US and Russian businessmen suggest an increasing activity of commercial interests attempting to find a way out of the situation created by the conflict in Ukraine. This may indicate that economic interests are increasingly influencing political decisions, as well as pointing to the possibility of restoring cooperation between the two countries in conditions of international isolation. However, such initiatives could face criticism from political leaders who emphasize the importance of adhering to international law and supporting the sovereignty of Ukraine.