CBSs Margaret Brennan is shocked, flummoxed, stunned and perplexed at the amount of time President Trump’s personal envoy Steve Witkoff spent in trust building conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

This CBS interview comes on the heels of reporting about Volodymyr Zelenskyy losing his cool and angrily shouting at Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and provides quite a contrast. Envoy Steve Witkoff patiently outlines the framework for his respectful discussions with Vladimir Putin.

CBS is really concerned about the details of these meetings.  The possibility of peace negotiations, the looming likelihood of a ceasefire and the status of the sanctions ending are all of great concern.  Watch and you will see what I mean. WATCH (prompted):

[Transcript of the Russia Discussion] –  MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to also ask you about Russia. You are a very trusted advisor to President Trump, and he sent you to speak face to face with Vladimir Putin. Fox reported you sat with Putin for three and a half hours. You said that you spent a lot of time talking, developing a friendship and a relationship with Putin, and that’s how you helped bring this U.S. Citizen Mark Fogel, home. Can you take us inside that room? Did you have a translator? Did you have a note taker? Were you talking in English? What happened?

STEVE WITKOFF: There was a translator. In fact, there were two translators. And I- to me, the assignment was trust building and speaking behalf- on behalf of my boss, the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump. And I had no expectation as to how long the meeting was going to last. I was intent on carrying a message from the President to President Putin. I had been advised that the President- that President Putin had something for me to transmit back to the President. And the meeting ended, I looked at my watch, and it was close to three and a half hours that we were in there and hopefully that that suggests that a lot of good things got accomplished. I think that President Trump believes- and I believe because he believes it, that trust building begins with good, proper communication. And we had really good- we just had a great discussion being President Putin, and now it will be up to President Putin and President Trump to work something out. And I think they’re going to be successful.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Did you have an intelligence officer or anyone else with you? That’s an extraordinary amount of face time with Putin.

STEVE WITKOFF: I had- it was just me.

MARGARET BRENNAN: It was just you. The head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund- I know you know him- Kirill Dmitriev, told Reuters that afterward they expect a number of American companies to return to Russia this year. Is he right to expect that? Did you discuss lifting U.S. sanctions off of Russia?

STEVE WITKOFF: We did not have that specific discussion at- at the meeting you’re referring to. But, I think that- that obviously there would be an expectation that if we get to a peace deal, that you would be able to have American companies come back and do business there. And I think that everybody would believe that that would be a positive good thing to happen.

MARGARET BRENNAN: After the end to the war and concessions were made by Russia?

STEVE WITKOFF: Well, that’s what everybody wants–

MARGARET BRENNAN: –Okay.

STEVE WITKOFF: What everybody wants- the beg- the beginning of that Margaret is- would be a- would be a temporary ceasefire. But, the long term goal would be an end to this- that we’ve had a- you know, close to a million and a half deaths. And so- you know, President Trump, the- his- his agenda, is to end this carnage. It just didn’t belong to- it didn’t need to happen, and it doesn’t need to continue- not, you know, another day. So we’re on it at his direction. And I think there is- you’re going to see some- some real positive developments in the near term future.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, thank you for joining us. We’ll be back in a moment with a lot more “Face the Nation.” Stay with us.