Donald Trump ’s special envoy Steve Witkoff is facing mounting criticism for describing Russian president Vladimir Putin as a “humanitarian” during their talks in St Petersburg.

Volodymyr Zelensky said a massive Russian aerial attack overnight, which involved at least 21 ballistic missiles and killed two people, showed the US-Russia talks had resulted in “no real change in [Moscow’s] attitude”.

Without naming Witkoff directly, Ukraine ’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said the Kyiv strikes were “what Russian ‘humanism’ truly sounds like”, adding: “Appeasement, servility, and flattery will not stop this war. Only strength will.”

There was also growing criticism of Witkoff’s remark, which came following Moscow’s release of 74-year-old American citizen Stephen Hubbard, back home in Washington. Republican senator Thom Tillis responded with a post on X reading: “WTF, Steve?…