Trump is leaning on son-in-law Jared Kushner for difficult diplomacy

Source: AP

Updated 7:59 AM EST, December 21, 2025


WASHINGTON (AP) — As the dawn rose on President Donald Trump’s second term, one key figure from his first administration stood back, content to focus on his personal business interests and not retake a formal government role.

Now, nearly a year into Trump 2.0, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner has been drawn back into the foreign policy fold and is taking a greater role in delicate peace negotiations. Talks had initially been led almost solo by special envoy Steve Witkoff, a real estate mogul who had no government experience before this year.

The shift reflects a sense among Trump’s inner circle that Kushner, who has diplomatic experience, complements Witkoff’s negotiating style and can bridge seemingly intractable differences to close a deal, according to several current and former administration officials who, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the internal deliberations.

That role was on display this weekend as Kushner and Witkoff hosted Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev in Miami for talks on the latest proposals to end Russia’s war in Ukraine and they also met with Turkish and Qatari officials to discuss the fragile truce between Israel and Hamas in Gaza as they look to implement the second phase of Trump’s ceasefire plan.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/kushner-trump-gaza-ukraine-witkoff-russia-01739d7b665d07867c411c394179e9c6