WSJ What’s News - Witkoff-Putin Meeting Fuels Fresh Hope for Ukraine Peace Talks

Episode Date: November 26, 2025

A.M. Edition for Nov. 26. A new leak shows how U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff advised a Putin aide on the Ukraine peace plan. A plan that now seems to be gaining momentum, as President Trump clears the way for a meeting between Witkoff and Russian President Vladimir Putin, next week. Plus, good news for Medicare patients: prices for more than a dozen widely-used drugs just got cheaper - including Ozempic. And, ever wonder what happens to those giant balloons in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade? WSJ’s Amira McKee has got the inside scoop. Caitlin McCabe hosts. Sign up for the WSJ’s free What’s News newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At Desjardin, we speak business. We speak equipment modernization. We're fluent in data digitization and expansion into foreign markets. And we can talk all day about streamlining manufacturing processes. Because at Desjardin business, we speak the same language you do. Business. So join the more than 400,000 Canadian entrepreneurs who already count on us. And contact Desjardin today.

We'd love to talk, business. Ukraine peace talks find real momentum, even as a conversation between special envoy Steve Whitkoff and a Russian official leaks. Plus, good news for Medicare patients, prices for more than a dozen widely used drugs just got cheaper, including OZempic. The government spends upwards of $150 billion a year on drugs, and they pick a handful of drugs every year to target. Last year, it was 10 drugs. This year it's 15. drugs and they go after the ones that are very expensive and they can save a lot of money. And ever wonder what happens to those giant balloons in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade? We've got the inside scoop.

It's Wednesday, November 26th. I'm Caitlin McCabe for the Wall Street Journal and here is the AM edition of What's News. The top headlines and business stories moving your world today. The White House is defending special envoy Steve Whitkoff over a reported leaked conversation in which he told a Russian official that praising President Trump would help smooth over a call with President Vladimir Putin regarding the war in Ukraine. Witkoff also suggested that Putin called Trump ahead of a White House visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, essentially giving the Kremlin an opportunity to press the case

against giving Ukraine Tomahawk cruise missiles. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, President Trump said that Wiccoff's negotiating is a standard thing and suggested the envoy is making similar comments with Ukrainian counterparts amid a concerted push to end the war. They're going to keep talking. They're talking to Russia now. Steve Whitkoff is going over. Maybe with Jared. I'm not sure about Jared going. But he's involved in the process, smart guy. And they're going to be meeting with President Putin. I believe next week. Earlier in the day, Trump said in a social media post that the Ukraine peace plan had been fine-tuned with additional input from both sides. And Ukraine has since confirmed that a common

understanding had been reached with Washington during peace talks in Geneva. We had good discussions. Americans were open to hear what we say. And I think that brings me to idea that they believe now it's a momentum. So the upcoming days, weeks and maybe some months would define, would shape the future of this war. for quite a period. That's Ukrainian negotiator, Alexander Bevs. He said while a security guarantee akin to NATO's Article 5 remains imperative for Kiev to agree to a ceasefire, there's enough momentum to suggest a meeting between Trump and Zelensky

could take place as soon as the meeting with Putin. So the document that was presented to Ukraine and discussed in Geneva was significantly transformed and it reflects a lot of things that Ukraine wanted to put there or to change. change or to exclude from this plan. But there is no final draft. It's important to understand that the final decision and approval will be taken by the president. Overnight, Zelensky himself said that there were sensitive matters to discuss with President Trump. But with attacks continuing on the war's front lines, Zelensky insisted that Russia has to play its part before any deal can be signed. As long as Russia has not taken real steps toward demobilization, real steps to shut down

its war machine steps that would clearly show that Russia is serious about ending this war of aggression. We do not have the right to stop working, to support Ukraine, to support our people and support our collective security. And we do not have the right to demobilize ourselves. For his part, Trump left for Thanksgiving at Mar-a-Lago in Florida with cautious optimism and suggesting that there was no timeline in which to reach a deal. I don't have a deadline. I just, you know what the deadline for me is when it's over? The U.S. government has negotiated lower prices in the federal Medicare program for 15 high-selling medicines, including the popular weight loss drug, Ozempic, as part of a widening effort to rein in drug costs.

The list also includes some big sellers like GSK's asthma drug trilogy, Pfizer's breast cancer treatment eye brands, and Merck's diabetes drug, Janimek. That's good news for some patients who could see lower co-pays and other out-of-pocket costs imposed by their particular plan. It's worth noting that the price cuts don't apply to private health insurance plans. Business and finance editor Alex Brangos joins me now to discuss what all of this means. So, Alex, firstly, why does the U.S. government want to do this? What the government's doing here is trying to save money. It spends over $150 billion a year through Medicare on drugs for senior citizens. and it got this power to negotiate with drug companies a few years ago through an act of Congress.

And this isn't the first time. They did it last year as well. Targeted 10 drugs. This year it's 15. And they're thinking that it's going to save $12 billion for the program. So that's a lot of money. I also want to talk about the impact on pharma companies themselves. Medicare spends more than $150 billion a year on prescription drugs.

So will the cuts mean reduced revenue for drug makers? somewhat. Although the drug makers are signaling that it's something that they can absorb, a lot of these drugs have been on the market for some time, and it will affect their bottom line. They've argued against giving Medicare the ability to negotiate because they say in the long term it will reduce the money that they have to invest in new drugs. The thing that's hidden here is that the $12 billion figure is the face value cost of these drugs versus what Medicare is negotiating. But in reality, there's a lot of rebates and different ways that the drug price in the end isn't what is on the list price. So for the drug maker itself, yes, they're going to have less revenue for some of these things, but it's not a catastrophic hit. That's business and finance editor Alex Brangos. Thanks, Alex. Thank you.

Coming up, former Fox host Tucker Carlson gets into the gold game. And we take a closer look at how to deflate the infamous inflatables in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. Those stories and more after the break. In corporate news, Campbell's has said it has placed an executive on temporary leave after he was allegedly caught on tape saying the company made, quote, highly processed food for poor people. The comments came to light in a lawsuit filed by a former Campbell's cybersecurity analyst who accused Vice President of Information Technology, Martin Valley. of making racist comments and disparaging the company's products in a secretly recorded meeting. In the lawsuit, the analyst claimed he was fired a few weeks after reporting the comments to his manager. Campbell said it is investigating the allegations against Bally while defending

the ingredients it uses in its products. Shares of retailers, Coles, and Abercrombie and Fitch surged in off-hours trading after stronger than expected earnings results from both retailers. shares of Dell Technologies also rose after the company raised its full-year outlook, as it said it expects more AI server shipments. The stock movements are part of a broader optimistic mood in markets this week. U.S. stock futures are ticking up following a three-day rally that sent the S&P 500 up 3.5 percent, a sharp turnaround from last week when fears about an AI bubble since shares falling. Some of those fears have eased slightly this week, though shares in NVIDIA dropped after reports suggested the company is facing growing competition from Google's

AI chips. Overall, markets are also getting a lift from rising expectations of a December rate cut, following encouraging comments from Fed officials recently. Rate cut expectations are also benefiting gold, which is on the upswing again. That's good news for former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who is getting in on this year's gold rush. Carlson, who, since his acrimonious exit from Fox in 2023, has launched a media company with a popular online show and streaming service, has now also launched a precious metals company called Battalion Metals, which offers coins, bars, and support for precious metals IRAs. His interest in tangible assets like gold comes, as Carlson has said central banks are a scam and that the U.S. dollar is doomed. Carlson's lack of confidence in central banks aligns with a Wall Street strategy called the debasement trade, which has seen investors turning to alternative assets like gold

because of concerns over major currencies. Journal media reporter Isabella Semenetti says the idea came after Carlson received a generous offer from a gold dealer. Tucker has been an outspoken critic and skeptic of the U.S. dollar. And the new company is a passion project of his that was an idea that came about after he was offered $20 million a year to be a pitchman for a gold company. He said he was skeptical of how a gold company could have such high margins that would allow it to be able to afford someone for such a high price, and that inspired him to get into the business himself.

And while families around the U.S. may be readying the turkey and their stomachs for tomorrow celebrations, volunteers at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade are already bracing themselves for the real workout, the breakdown process. As a giant Pokemon, followed by Papa Smurf, make their way through Manhattan, the unseen magic lies at the end of the parade. Volunteers have just 15 minutes to deflate the colossal inflatables, which take 90 minutes to inflate and are filled with thousands of cubic feet of helium. Journal News Associate Amir Maki says that for the balloon Wranglers, it's more than just a walk down Central Park Avenue. Bloon Wranglers, among the 5,000 some-od volunteers who keep the parade afloat, yank open these

industrial-grade zippers to release the helium, and they dive chest-first onto the collapsing characters. Volunteers are warned not to inhale the gas, as it's much more dangerous than the average birthday balloon that'll give you that Alvin and Chetmunk's voice. Veteran parade volunteers told me that timing is essential to a seamless parade. broadcast, and to keep the parade from getting backed up. The stakes are really high for what has risen to be among the most watched entertainment broadcasts in the country. Volunteers are trained at what some called flight schools, where they practice maneuvering the giant balloons around obstacles, and they learn the sort of lay down and writhe strategy, as one volunteer

put it, for quick deflation. On the day, designated balloon pilots direct the wranglers on how to steer the blune and coach them through that deflation process. And that's it for What's News for this Wednesday morning. Today's show is produced by Hattie Moyer and Daniel Bach. Our supervising producer is Sandra Kilhoff. And I'm Caitlin McCabe for The Wall Street Journal. We'll be back tonight with a new show. Until then, thanks for listening.