Putin's talks with U.S. envoys constructive, extremely frank: Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin had substantive, constructive and extremely frank talks with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in a trusting atmosphere in Moscow, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said early Sunday morning.

The conversation in Moscow on Saturday lasted three hours and 10 minutes.

Ushakov said the discussion on extremely serious issues took place in a working-format setting and informally over dinner.

Putin reaffirmed Russia's readiness to continue joint work with the United States in search of political and diplomatic solutions to the Ukrainian issues.

Ushakov said that the Russian side provided clear and comprehensive assessments of the situation unfolding amid the special military operation. "In particular, note was taken of the real advances made by the Russian army within the combat zone; confidence was expressed in achieving the stated objectives, and the need to eliminate all root causes of the conflict was emphasized," he noted.

The talks were not confined to an exchange of views on resolving the Ukraine crisis. Economic matters and potential large-scale, mutually beneficial Russian-U.S. projects were also discussed in considerable detail, said Ushakov.

Overall, the negotiations can be described as timely and highly beneficial for both sides. It was confirmed that the heads of state of the two countries will maintain personal contact going forward, and that work through Witkoff and Kushner will continue.

Ushakov said that the U.S. envoys pledged that during their upcoming contacts in Kiev tomorrow, they would relay observations and assessments they had received directly from the Russian president regarding reaching a durable peaceful settlement to the Ukraine conflict.

China opened 15 new international air cargo routes in September, adding 42 round-trip flights per week, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP)’s air logistics division said on Sunday.

The newly launched routes included nine to Asia, four to Europe, and two to North America.

The cargo transported on the routes mainly included cross-border e-commerce goods, fresh food and agricultural products, electromechanical and electronic products, high-end manufactured goods, and consumer goods for daily use.

The flights are operated by nine airlines, eight of which are Chinese carriers.

According to CFLP’s air logistics division, China had opened a total of 130 new international air cargo routes as of September 30 this year, adding more than 334 round-trip flights per week.