U.S.-Russia talks on ending the war in Ukraine now involve a multibillion-dollar deal for the international assets of Lukoil, one of Russia's largest energy companies, The New York Times reported on October 3, 2026. According to the Times, citing people familiar with the meeting, Vladimir Putin raised the deal during a September 5 meeting at the Kremlin with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, proposing it as a way to show Russians they could do business with the United States. The assets include oil fields, refineries and gas stations around the world, among them stations in New Jersey; the deal is contingent on approval from the U.S. government and the Kremlin, the Times reported.
The leading group seeking the assets includes American investor Todd Boehly, “who has donated $2 million to President Trump's political causes,” two Middle Eastern groups “that have done business with Mr. Kushner or Mr. Witkoff's family,” and “an arm of the U.S. government itself,” the Times reported. The Financial Times reported on September 22 that the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation is expected to take a mid-teens equity stake, that the consortium includes Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al-Nahyan, the UAE's national security adviser, and the Al-Khayyat family, “which has worked closely with the White House and Trump family members on property and energy projects,” and that the bid aims to unseat Carlyle, whose January agreement to buy the assets has stalled awaiting U.S. approval. The FT noted the proposal “would put the US government in the unusual position of simultaneously bidding for the assets while another part of the administration decides their fate.”
A senior administration official told the Times that Kushner and Witkoff are helping negotiate the deal's financial terms to ensure “a substantial upfront payment and profits for the United States,” The Hill reported. The Times reported no sign that either envoy would personally profit. A spokeswoman for Witkoff said he “has no conflict of interest, and no financial stake in this matter.” Hui Chen, a former Justice Department ethics adviser, told the Daily Beast, “This is an alarming and very concerning set of entanglements.” Sheikh Tahnoon also backed the UAE investment in the Trump family's World Liberty Financial (see A Firm Tied to the UAE's National Security Adviser Bought 49% of Trump's Crypto Company Four Days Before His Inauguration and Raskin Launches an Investigation Into Kushner for Negotiating the Iran War While Running a $6.2B Fund Bankrolled by Saudi Arabia).