Overview
- Keith Kellogg will step down as U.S. special envoy for Ukraine in January, the White House confirmed to the Kyiv Independent after Reuters first reported his plans.
- His departure removes a prominent pro-Ukraine voice who was viewed by European diplomats and Ukrainian officials as a sympathetic interlocutor.
- Kellogg’s timeline aligns with rules that special presidential envoys generally need Senate confirmation to serve beyond roughly 360 days.
- Kellogg frequently condemned Russian strikes and helped secure the release of dozens of detainees in Belarus through limited sanctions relief.
- No replacement has been identified, Kellogg’s deputy recently moved to the Belarus envoy role, and the U.S. still lacks a Senate-confirmed ambassador in Kyiv with Julie Fisher serving as charge d’affaires.