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Volodymyr Zelenskyy, centre, with Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre, right, and Finnish president Alexander Stubb.

He said Witkoff had briefed Putin on his talks the previous day in Oslo, where the American met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Norwegian prime minister and the Finnish president.

With reports that hackers were already exploiting the flaws to break into websites, government agencies in the Netherlands and Finland were among those that took sites offline as a precaution.

“Our first session, devoted to de-escalation, will offer an opportunity to explore practical ways forward,” said Pekka Haavisto, Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General for Sudan, in a call to delegates to identify measures and use their “respective channels of engagement [to] build confidence and help create conditions conducive to a comprehensive ceasefire”.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a press conference with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store and Finnish President Alexander Stubb (not pictured) in Oslo, Norway, October 20, 2026.

EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said in a statement: “Europeans should be able to book their holidays without fear of being scammed.”

Witkoff flew into Russia's second city on Wednesday morning a day after conducting what a US official called "constructive" talks in Oslo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the leaders of Finland and Norway and European and NATO representatives.

Witkoff arrived in Saint Petersburg early morning for talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin about Ukraine, a day after holding discussions with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the leaders of Norway and Finland.

“We’ve been very concrete, and the organisation was very positive,” Zelensky said alongside leaders from Norway and Finland, who also attended the talks.

The prime ministers of Norway and Finland also attended the talks in Oslo.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy hugs US envoy Steve Witkoff as Norwegian PM Jonas Gahr Støre and Finnish President Alexander Stubb look on in Oslo, 20 October 2026.

It began changing course late September and eventually moved into the same orbit as ICEYE-X36, a satellite operated by Finland’s ICEYE under contract with the United States.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Russia on Oct 21 after meeting in Oslo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and leaders of Norway and Finland, while President Donald Trump said it was time for Kyiv to end the war with Moscow. Russia launched the Cosmos-2612 military satellite into low Earth orbit in April. It began changing course in late September and eventually moved into the same orbit as ICEYE-X36, a satellite operated by Finland’s ICEYE under contract with the United States.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (second from right) hugs U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff as Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store (right) and Finnish President Alexander Stubb (left) look on during their meeting in Oslo, Norway, on Oct. 20.

Following the talks in Oslo, which also involved Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, Zelenskyy had appeared relatively positive, telling journalists he had recently held a constructive call with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and calling for a trilateral meeting with Trump and Putin.

The strategy follows last month’s meeting of leaders from 12 countries, including Germany, France, Finland and Denmark.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (left) takes part in a press briefing in Oslo, Norway, on Oct 20, with Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (centre) and Finnish President Alexander Stubb. Flanked by Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, the Ukrainian president insisted that “Ukraine wants peace more than anyone”.

Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who also took part in the talks, said "genuine progress" was made on proposals to achieve peace but gave no details and warned that patience would be needed.

During the visit, Zelenskyy met with Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store in Oslo, along with Trump envoy Steve Witkoff. Stubb said, “Today was a good day for peace.” The Finnish president said Witkoff intends to fly to St. Petersburg on Wednesday to meet with Russian leaders and discuss ideas from the Oslo meeting. Zelenskyy said this about Russian-launched missiles while standing next to Finnish and Norwegian leaders.

Norway’s prime minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, and Finland’s president, Alexander Stubb, also took part, alongside EU and British security officials.