WRFH/Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM - National Security Matters: Who is Steven Witkoff?

Episode Date: May 5, 2025

Steven Witkoff, dubbed Trump's "Envoy to Everything" by the New York Times, has emerged as one of the Trump administration's most prominent figures.  Malia discusses who he is and what he's doing in this week's episode of National Security Matters. 

Hello and welcome to National Security Matters, the show where we discuss foreign policy, national security, the defense industry, and the organizations and individuals therein. I'm your host, Malia Tibodeau. A name that has come up a lot when talking about Trump's foreign policy is Stephen Wickhoff. Officially Trump's envoy to the Middle East, Wiccoff has advised and negotiated on a myriad of foreign policy matters, including immigration, tariffs, and the Russia-Ukraine-P peace negotiations. However, before his appointment as envoy, Wikov was a real estate developer, not a politician, and definitely not. a diplomat. So who is Stephen Wittkoff? Stephen Wittkoff was born in 1957 to Martin and Lewis Wittkoff. He attended Hofstra University where he obtained both his BA in political science and his JD. He worked as a real estate litigator for Dreyer and Trowb, where he first met Donald Trump as one of

his company's clients. Wiccoff tells a story of buying Trump a ham and Swiss sandwich at 3 a.m. at a local deli, sparking decades of friendship. Wittkoff in the late 80s through the early 90s, became a real estate developer flipping undervalued properties and selling them at a higher price. He formed his own company, Witkoff Group, in 1997, which specialized in commercial real estate. Wickoff became known for his work converting New York office buildings into luxury condos. He subsequently gone on to own properties in Chicago, Dallas, and Miami, in addition to his overseas holdings. While Whitkoff remains a large name in real estate circles, he's taken a lower profile as he settled down with his family and changed his investment strategies.

Wikoff was a member of the Great American Economic Revival Group created in 2020 by Trump to help offset the economic impacts of COVID-19. As of yet, I have been unable to uncover any concrete evidence that this initiative produced any results. On November 12, 2024, Trump released a statement nominating Wickeff as a special envoy to the Middle East. The post-red, quote, D'ev is a highly respected leader in business and philanthropy.

Steve will be an unrelenting voice for peace." Some of Wyckoff's applicable skills are his experience in donor and foreign investor relations. He played a key rule in smoothing things out with Republicans who Trump had previously snubbed, notably Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Wickoff first came on to the international diplomatic scene during the transition between the Biden and Trump administration. He participated in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire negotiations, which resulted in 33 Israeli hostages being released. According to British news publication, The Telegraph, quote,

Wickev isn't a diplomat, he doesn't talk like a diplomat, he has no interest in diplomatic manners and protocols, he's a businessman who wants to reach a deal quickly and charge ahead unusually aggressively, end quote. Though he is formally in charge of the Middle East, Wickev has unofficially become Trump's envoy to everything, overseeing American policy spanning from Iranian denuclearization negotiations, the multiple offensive Israel is involved in, and European relations. Wyckhoff has been very directly involved with talks with Vladimir Putin. Vladimir Zelensky, on the other hand, has recently claimed that, whether wittingly or not,

Weikov is repeating Russian talking points about Ukraine needing to have land concessions for peace. Personally, I would disagree with Zelensky as many foreign policy experts have stated that Ukraine must concede land and or resources to facilitate peace, which is what they say they want. Wickef has also mistakenly stated that Iranian uranium purification levels can be retained at 3.2%, which is two-thirds of what Iran needs to continue its nuclear program. That was an Obama-era policy that Trump has since disavowed. Weikov needed to walk this statement back through clarification on Fox News. The Trump administration's official position is complete nuclear disarmament. Overall, Wiccoff's four months as special envoy have been marked by painstakingly slow progress with Israel, but he has been instrumental in opening channels with Russia and also, and in February

2025, successfully negotiated the release of Mark Vogel, an American who has been jailed there since 2021. Wyckoff recently participated in a meeting alongside Marco Rubio, Keith Kellogg, French President Emmanuel Macron, and top Ukrainian advisors. Hopefully, we'll see progress on the Russia-Ukraine front from this meeting, and we'll see how Stephen Wyckoff proceeds from the president. now on. This has been National Security Matters with Molia Tibato on WRFH Radiofield Hillsdale 101.7 FM. Tune in next time to learn what the Secretary of State actually does and learn more

about our current one, Marco Rubio.