He was here within 12 hours, according to footage of his convoy, leaving and returning to Moscow’s Vnukovo airport.
And for most of it, he seemed to have been waiting.
Witkov, a former fortune mogul who became Donald Trump’s chief negotiator and often referred to as the president’s “fixer,” had been sent to Moscow to offer a US proposal for a 30-day ceasefire to Vladimir Putin.
His visit was scheduled for near the beginning of the week, following talks with the US ukrane in Saudi Arabia.
However, after arriving at lunch on Thursday, he was let out a thumbs-played for at least eight hours before being called to the Kremlin.
Putin appears to have been too busy meeting someone else due to the rushed arrangement of the state visit announced the day before.
I don’t know if the timing of Lukashenko’s visit was intentional, but that certainly didn’t feel like a coincidence.
Instead, it felt like a classic Putin power play.
Kremlin leaders don’t particularly like to put back the corners what to do on their lawn.
This felt like a message to Americans – “I’m the boss, I set a schedule, and I can’t see anyone.”
He ultimately gave Mr. Witkov a very important facial time when the night fell behind closed doors.
MNA/