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Boris Epshteyn has quickly become one of the most powerful figures in the early days of the presidential transition, even floating his own name to help broker peace between Russia and Ukraine.
- Nov. 15, 2024, 12:19 p.m. ET
President-elect Donald J. Trump was flying to Washington for his first face-to-face meeting with President Biden since winning the election when a top aide offered a startling idea to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine.
The adviser, Boris Epshteyn, who coordinated the legal defenses in Mr. Trump’s criminal cases, suggested to the president-elect that he should be Mr. Trump’s special envoy for the Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to four people briefed on what took place.
Mr. Epshteyn, who was born in Russia and lived there until he was 7, has no experience in foreign policy. He told the group that he had family on both sides of the conflict.
Several people on the plane appeared shocked at the idea of appointing Mr. Epshteyn to a sensitive diplomatic post, according to the people briefed on the matter. In addition to his lack of diplomatic experience, he is currently under indictment in Arizona along with several other Trump allies for their efforts to overturn the 2020 election with so-called fake electors. (A fifth person with knowledge of the events insisted people on the plane reacted well to the idea and suggested thoughts on how to structure such a move.)
But none of the people with knowledge of the incident disputed one key fact: The person on the plane who registered the least shock at the special envoy notion was the only person whose opinion ultimately matters. Mr. Trump listened with apparent interest and did not dismiss the proposal, even though he did not commit to it.
Whatever comes of Mr. Epshteyn’s idea, Mr. Trump has already given his adviser extraordinary power and shown a willingness to heed his counsel above that of others. Even the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, who has been in many transition meetings in the past week, has privately remarked at how surprised he is that Mr. Epshteyn has been granted so much authority.
English (US)