Battle of the jackets dominates start of US-Russia crunch talks

There are many ways to one-up someone.

In the world of global politics, you’d expect a competition of the biggest private plane, or the fanciest welcome dinner.

One way of showing off is dressing up better than anyone else in the room.

And the Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev certainly got the memo when he welcomed his US counterparts at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport in wintery weather conditions.

In this photo provided by Kirill Dmitriev X-account Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev, left, greets U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, right, and U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner

The US envoys Steve Witkoff and Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner touched down in Moscow today to meet Russian president Vladimir Putin expected to centre around the Ukraine war.

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Instead of a typical politician’s outfit, Dmitriev donned a striking white puffer jacket emblazoned with the Russian Federation’s coat of arms and matching red stitching.

So that no one would be left confused about who he represented, the back was decorated with capital ‘Russia’ written on it along with a variation of the sickle and hammer symbol.

US President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff points at Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev as Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, watches at Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow, Russia

Witkoff appeared stunned by Dmitriev’s warm choice of clothing as he disembarked into the sleet and snowstorm.

The 69-year-old had opted for a less loud, business casual wool camel coat and a matching jumper instead.

He gave a quick smile to the reporters before the pair shook hands and hugged.

Witkoff was so impressed by the coat that he touched the material and appeared to comment on it while Kushner smiled in the background.

This handout picture obtained on November 12, 2026, from the Russian Direct Investment Fund shows Russia's presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev welcoming US special envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner upon their arrival at Moscow's Vnukovo airport

Meanwhile, Kushner had bizarrely decided to leave his coat at home despite the weather and temperatures hovering barely above 0°C.

He appeared almost scantily clad compared to the two the other men and security guards as he watched on when they greeted.

When Dmitriev shared clips of the welcome on his X account, many noticed Kushner’s lack of appropriate winter clothing.

One person said: ‘Jared, dude, you are in Russia, where is your coat?’

Another one joked: ‘We gotta get Jared a winter coat.’

Their Russian host ushered the men into the convoy of blacked-out SUVs waiting on the tarmac before their meeting with Putin.

The US team’s trip to the Kremlin comes a day after Abu Dhabi talks aimed at ending the deadly war in Ukraine that Russia started in February 2022.

Witkoff and Kushner are set to travel to Dublin next to meet Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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Original source Battle of the jackets dominates start of US-Russia crunch talks

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