From envoy to eponym—fawning has never looked so formal.
APR 12, 2025
He came, he bowed, he may have begged for an autograph.
Steve Witkoff made headlines today after a warm, three-hour meeting at the Kremlin with Vladimir Putin, during which he reportedly recommended that “the United States take a more understanding posture toward Russia’s legitimate concerns.” Specifically, that handing over stolen land to Russia was the only path to peace.
One thing is clear: President Trump’s special envoy to Russia is earning his place in history as the most infamous sycophant of 2025.
We winced a few weeks ago when he was unable to name even the regions of Ukraine he proposed handing over to Russia.
We gasped when the former real estate mogul from the Bronx—a city where the majority language is Spanish—declared that language should be the determining factor in ceding sovereign Ukrainian territory to Putin.
We were incredulous when he endorsed as “legitimate” the sham referendums held in Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson—staged at gunpoint by Russian occupiers in September 2022.
We stared in disbelief as he sat down with Kremlin mouthpiece Tucker Carlson to praise the “beautiful Christian faith” of war criminal Vladimir Putin.
But today, with his visit to the Kremlin and urgent plea for Ukraine to surrender four regions of stolen territory to Russia, we can say with confidence that Steve Witkoff has earned his place in the annals of history—alongside men whose names became bywords for betrayal, appeasement, and blind servility.
You know their names:
- Benedict Arnold – American Revolutionary War general who defected to the British; synonymous with treason in the U.S.
- Judas Iscariot – The disciple who betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver; universal symbol of betrayal.
- Vidkun Quisling – Norwegian leader who collaborated with Nazi Germany; “Quisling” is now a synonym for a traitor.
- Marcus Junius Brutus – Participated in the assassination of Julius Caesar; remembered for betrayal (“Et tu, Brute?”).
- Philby (Kim Philby) – British intelligence officer who spied for the Soviet Union; a modern symbol of espionage and betrayal.
- Ganelon – Character in The Song of Rolandwho betrays Charlemagne; became a medieval byword for treachery.
It takes a lot to become an eponym or byword, but Mr. Witkoff, you have earned it.
Yes, after today, a new term is catching on—“Witkoff.” It describes a rare species of envoy: one who flies overseas, stares down a genocidal regime… and then gives it everything it wants. The Witkoff does not negotiate. He apologizes. He does not challenge. He congratulates. He returns home flush with selfies, propaganda quotes, and, presumably, a souvenir matryoshka doll tucked under one arm.
Historians will remember Benedict Arnold for betrayal, Quisling for collaboration, and now—Witkoff —for servile adoration of tyrants in real time, under the bright lights of global scrutiny.
To put it in the context of the next edition of the Oxford English Dictionary:
Witkoff (noun)
/ˈwɪt-kɒf/Definition:
A government representative who abandons national interest to serve as a self-congratulating, fawning, and sycophantic mouthpiece for a hostile foreign regime—especially one engaged in war crimes.Example usage:
“The ambassador’s groveling before the dictator was so humiliating, the press began referring to him as a total Witcoff.”Origin:
Coined in 2025 following the conduct of a U.S. envoy who publicly praised and defended an adversarial power while ignoring its atrocities and undermining his own nation’s policy.
DW Phillips is a journalist, a filmmaker and an attorney. He directs for Ukraine Story, a foundation for documentary reporting.
With camera in hand, DW shares frontline stories of perseverance and humanity in the great battles of the 21st Century. He brings the perspective of a filmmaker, journalist and constitutional attorney to his commentaries
We already knew that two of the worst criminals in America are longstanding (40 years +) close friends of Krasnov: Paul Manafort and Roger Stone.
Now we must add another: Witless, whom no one had even heard of until recently. Now appointed chief putler ball-licker for the Kraskov crime syndicate.
“We gasped when the former real estate mogul from the Bronx—a city where the majority language is Spanish—declared that language should be the determining factor in ceding sovereign Ukrainian territory to Putin.”
Off the scale hypocrisy and stupidity from Witless.
He forgets Wittkov is Russian from origin, has no doubt a Russian passport too, and this ‘asshole’ with a great love for Putin, must make a ‘deal’………..
Witkoff : Russia and Ukraine
In his own criminal words:
From wiki:
Russia and Ukraine
In 2018, Witkoff, whose paternal grandparents immigrated from Russia, opposed sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
Witkoff has praised Russian president Putin and has appeared to support Russian government claims about its war against Ukraine. He said that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was “not necessarily” started by Russia, that NATO had a significant role in provoking the conflict, and that most Eastern Ukrainians want to live under Russian rule.
Witkoff said he is 100% sure that Putin is not going to invade Europe and is not interested in the rest of Ukraine outside of the annexed southeastern Ukraine.
Witkoff spoke positively of Vladimir Putin. He called Putin a “great guy” and “super smart”. Witkoff said “I liked him, I think he was honest” and “I don’t regard Putin as a bad guy”. According to Witkoff, Putin told him that he prayed for “his friend” Donald Trump following the assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. He recalled that “President Putin had commissioned a beautiful portrait of President Trump, from the leading Russian artist, and actually gave it to me and asked me to take it home to President Trump”.
On March 21, 2025, in a podcast interview with Tucker Carlson, Witkoff said that the biggest issue in negotiations are the “so-called four regions: Donbas, Crimea, Lugansk…and there’s two others”. Russia occupied and annexed Crimea in 2014, then occupied and annexed four more Ukrainian provinces during its 2022 invasion. He said that the populations in those provinces were Russian-speaking and “there were referendums where the vast majority of people indicated that they wanted to be under Russian rule”.
The polls had been held by Russia in the midst of its invasion and were condemned as a “sham” by the U.S., Ukraine and most of the international community.
Witkoff represents everything that’s bad, having no brains, no morals, and no dignity whatsoever. In other words, a perfect little slimeball for Trump’s administration. History books will not be kind to him or anyone else who sold his or her soul to a convicted felon and gangster.
I said all along that Trump likely was teeing himself up to pitch Ukraine (and Zel) an absurd “peace deal.”
Anything acceptable to putler would be completely unviable for Ukraine.
Even Krasnov knows that, but it would be enough for him to expedite exactly what he has threatened to do all along : withdraw all support and all involvement from Ukraine.
He would then say in an offended voice that “I tried to bring peace but Zelensky wants only war.”
Witless is the instrument of this capitulation.
The bastard has uttered not one word of condemnation for the child murderers that he admires so much.
I hope I’m wrong about this.