These are busy days for Steve Witkoff.
The real estate developer-turned-Swiss Army Knife diplomat (officially the special presidential envoy for peace missions) was sitting in the galleries of the Israeli Knesset on Monday, listening as President Donald Trump basked in the newly brokered ceasefire-for-hostages deal, when his boss reminded him of another assignment.
“We have to get Russia done. We got to get that one done,” Trump said while musing about a new Iran nuclear deal. “If you don’t mind, Steve, let’s focus on Russia first.”
Energized by success in the Middle East, Trump is eager to harness that most elusive ingredient in politics and diplomacy: momentum. A week that began with a 36-hour trip to the Middle East ended with Ukraine’s president in the White House, trying to convince Trump to approve new long-range missiles before a surprise meeting soon with Vladimir Putin in Budapest.
In between, Trump confirmed he’d authorized the CIA to operate covertly in Venezuela while threatening to strike inside the country. He threw his endorsement — and a $20 billion lifeline from the US Treasury — behind Argentina’s likeminded leader. And he zigzagged through new China tariff threats ahead of a high-stakes meeting with President Xi Jinping in a few weeks.
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