Russian Special Envoy Kirill Dmitriev (L), Russian president’s aide, Yuri Ushakov (C), and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (R). (Pavel Bednyakov/Getty Images, Collage by the Kyiv Independent)
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s outreach to the Trump administration — once seen as one of Moscow’s most coordinated diplomatic efforts — now appears increasingly fractured.
Putin’s longtime foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, is reportedly losing ground to Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, who aims to take a leading role in Russia’s contacts with the Trump administration.
Experts caution that Russia’s internal dynamics are more nuanced than they appear.
“They might be jealous of each other, maybe even trying to undermine one another — it’s possible,” Russian political analyst and Kremlin critic Fedor Krasheninnikov told the Kyiv Independent.
“I’m not sure Dmitriev actually wants to be foreign minister. But frankly, Lavrov is quite old and unwell, and it’s not clear he wouldn’t be glad to leave, himself.”
The cost of war: Is Russia running out of money to continue the fight?
Competing channels
At least three senior figures are now central to Putin’s outreach to Washington: Dmitriev, Lavrov, and Yuri Ushakov, the president’s longtime foreign policy aide.
Dmitriev, a 49-year-old Kyiv native and U.S.-educated executive, has emerged as one of the key intermediaries with the Trump administration.
Appointed as special envoy for economic affairs, he was tasked with promoting joint ventures with the U.S. in exchange for a “favorable peace deal” in Ukraine.
For the Russian president, Dmitriev is a trusted insider. He is married to Natalia Popova, a classmate and close friend of Putin’s youngest daughter, Ekaterina Tikhonova.
“Dmitriev’s pitch is that he understands business-driven Trumpists, like old-school Russian diplomacy, can’t,” said Anton Barbashin, visiting researcher at the European Council on Foreign Relations.
“We’re seeing Dmitriev fully embracing a Trump-like manner of public engagements (on X), and he may claim connections to people in the broader Trump circles in Ukraine.”
Lavrov, 76, has dominated Russian diplomacy for around three decades. A career diplomat since Soviet times, he has shaped Moscow’s foreign policy through wars in Georgia, Syria, and Ukraine.
“With his savoir-faire and cunning charm, (Lavrov) served as Putin’s best commander in the permanent confrontation with Western countries,” said Dr. Marie Mendras, a professor at Sciences Po’s Paris School of International Affairs.
“His job was to talk his foreign interlocutors into making deals with Moscow, believing that Putin was a serious man, with great authority, to be respected.”
But his influence has been tested by both age and Putin’s increasing reliance on loyal technocrats and shadow envoys.
Ushakov, meanwhile, remains a quiet but powerful figure. A former ambassador to the U.S., he has served as Putin’s top foreign policy advisor since 2012.
“Ushakov is directly by Putin’s side — far more influential than either Lavrov or Dmitriev,” Krasheninnikov said. “He and Putin discuss and oversee the main strategic decisions together.”
Fractures in Riyadh
The apparent rivalry reportedly surfaced in February, when Putin sent two competing teams to negotiate with the U.S.
On Feb. 18, a Russian delegation led by Lavrov met U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Saudi Arabia — the first official contact between the two governments since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Ushakov attended the talks alongside Lavrov, while Dmitriev was seen in Riyadh but excluded from the main table.
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (L) and presidential aide Yury Ushakov attend a meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on Sept. 2, 2025. (Maxim Shemetov/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
According to Russian independent media outlet Agentstvo, Putin initially approved only Lavrov and Ushakov for the delegation.
Dmitriev, according to Agentstvo’s sources, later appealed directly to Putin to join the meeting — a request reportedly granted without Lavrov’s knowledge.
When Lavrov noticed a third chair prepared for Dmitriev, he was said to have objected, insisting Putin should tell him personally if Dmitriev were to attend.
Dmitriev left the room shortly after, speaking to journalists instead.
“It seems the conflict stems from the competition for the role of chief negotiator,” Barbashin noted. “Ushakov holds that role formally, but Dmitriev continues to challenge his authority.”
A failed summit
Months after the first talks, Putin’s outreach effort suffered its first major setback.
Lavrov spoke with Rubio by phone on Oct. 21 to prepare for the planned Budapest summit, which would have been the second meeting between Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump.
Shortly afterward, Rubio reportedly advised Trump to cancel the event, citing Moscow’s inflexible demands and refusal to consider a ceasefire in Ukraine.
The summit’s collapse was followed by the Trump administration’s first sanctions against Russia, targeting oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil.
Speculation soon spread that Lavrov, after the failed meeting, had fallen out of favor with the Russian president, prompting Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov to deny the reports.
“There is nothing true in these claims,” Peskov told Russian media on Nov. 7. “Lavrov is working as foreign minister, of course.”
Don’t get fooled by Lukashenko
Dmitriev steps in
In the aftermath, Dmitriev flew to Washington to salvage ties — but found little audience there as Trump, Rubio, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent were out of the country.
The Russian envoy sought to meet U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, though it remains unclear if the meeting occurred.
Bessent even labeled Dmitriev a “Russian propagandist” after the latter told U.S. media during his visit that American sanctions would have no impact on Russia’s economy.
His only public meeting was with pro-Russian Republican congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, to whom he presented a box of chocolates inscribed with Putin’s quotes.
Russia’s top economic negotiator Kirill Dmitriev talks to US President Donald Trump’s Envoy Steve Witkoff in Saint Petersburg on April 11, 2025. (Vyacheslav Prokovyev/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
“It’s debatable whether Dmitriev can take the lead, but long term, he has a better claim to manage certain aspects of foreign policy given Lavrov and Ushakov’s age,” Barbashin said.
“If he fails, or rather would be perceived by Putin as a failure, he won’t make it up. If he does achieve something tangible, Putin may see to his rise,” he added.
Krasheninnikov, however, dismissed talk of a major power struggle.
“The idea of a conflict within the leadership seems to be largely exaggerated,” he said. “Most foreign ministers today are figureheads to some degree.”
Still, Lavrov’s absence from a key Security Council meeting on Nov. 5 fueled more rumors about his decline. That same week, the Kremlin replaced him as Russia’s representative to the G20 summit with Maxim Oreshkin, deputy head of the presidential administration.
Experts caution against writing Lavrov off too soon.
“There have been many occasions when it seemed Lavrov would go, but he doesn’t,” Barbashin said.
Krasheninnikov added that many of the rumors surrounding Lavrov are overblown.
“A person could have been sick or dealing with personal matters,” he said, noting that Lavrov soon reappeared at official events.
“Lavrov will keep working until either Putin asks him to step down or he passes away.”
Note from the author:
Hi, this is Tim. The author of this article. Thank you for taking the time to read it. At the Kyiv Independent, we don’t have a wealthy owner or political backing. We rely on readers like you to support our work.
If you found this article interesting, consider joining our community today
