Steve Witkoff facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Steve Witkoff
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Witkoff in May 2025
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| 1st United States Special Envoy to the Middle East | |
| Assumed office January 20, 2025 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Deputy | Morgan Ortagus |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Steven Charles Witkoff
March 15, 1957 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Lauren Rappoport
(m. 1987) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Hofstra University (BA, JD) |
Steven Charles Witkoff (born March 15, 1957) is an American lawyer and real estate investor. Since 2025, he has served as the United States special envoy to the Middle East. He is also the founder and chairman of the Witkoff Group, a company that develops real estate.
Witkoff was born in the Bronx and grew up on Long Island. He studied at Hofstra University, earning degrees in political science and law. He started his career as a real estate lawyer. Later, he began buying and developing important buildings in Manhattan, like the Daily News Building and the Woolworth Building.
During the first time Donald Trump was president, Witkoff was part of a group that helped the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2025, when Trump became president again, Witkoff was chosen as the special envoy to the Middle East. Before he officially started, he helped with talks that led to a ceasefire and hostage exchange in January 2025. He has also acted as a special helper to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Witkoff is Jewish. He was born in the Bronx, New York City. He grew up in Baldwin Harbor, New York and Old Westbury, New York on Long Island. His parents are Martin and Lois Witkoff. His father was the president of a clothing company, and his mother was an interior designer. His grandparents came to the United States from Russia.
Witkoff first went to Union College in Schenectady, New York. He then moved to Hofstra University. There, he earned a degree in political science in 1980. In 1983, he earned his law degree from Hofstra Law School.
Career in Real Estate
Witkoff started his career as a lawyer who specialized in real estate. People in the real estate world often describe him as smart and a good negotiator.
After finishing law school in 1983, Witkoff worked at a law firm in New York City. One of his clients there was Donald Trump. They became friends after working on a business deal together. Witkoff continued to practice real estate law until 1986.
Starting Stellar Management
In 1985, Witkoff started a company called Stellar Management with another real estate lawyer, Larry Gluck. They changed their careers from law to owning and managing buildings. They bought affordable apartment buildings in Washington Heights, Manhattan and the Northwest Bronx. At one point, they owned 85 buildings with over 3,000 apartments.
In 1995, Witkoff expanded his business to lower Manhattan. He bought several office buildings there. In 1996, he got money to buy 33 Maiden Lane, a 27-story building. The next year, he rented out many floors of the building to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Witkoff also bought other properties, including the famous Daily News Building in Manhattan.
Founding Witkoff Group
In 1997, Witkoff left Stellar Management. He then started his own company, the Witkoff Group, and became its chairman and CEO. The company is based in New York City. He began building homes and developing land.
In 1998, he and his business partner Rubin Schron bought the Woolworth Building for $138 million. He also bought properties in Chicago, Dallas, and Philadelphia. By October 1998, the Witkoff Group managed many commercial and retail properties. They also owned parts of many apartments and hotels.
By 2019, the Witkoff Group owned about 50 properties in the United States and other countries.
The Witkoff Group bought a project to build a resort and casino called Fontainebleau Las Vegas. The property was supposed to open in 2020 as The Drew. However, construction stopped in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Nevada. In February 2021, another company bought the property. The original name was brought back, and the hotel opened in December 2023.
Witkoff has many business connections in the Middle East.
Political Career and Public Service
In April 2020, during the first presidency of Donald Trump, Witkoff was part of the Great American Economic Revival Industry Groups. This group was created by Trump to help the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In July 2024, Witkoff gave a speech at the 2024 Republican National Convention.
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On September 15, 2024, Witkoff was playing golf with Trump when someone tried to harm Trump. A Secret Service officer stopped the person.
On November 9, 2024, Witkoff was chosen to help lead the committee for Trump's upcoming second presidency.
U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East
On November 12, 2024, President-elect Donald Trump announced that he had chosen Witkoff to be his Special Envoy to the Middle East. Witkoff had no previous experience in diplomacy.
Witkoff played a key part in helping to negotiate a ceasefire and hostage exchange between Israel and Hamas in January 2025. He worked with Brett McGurk, President Biden's main negotiator, and the Qatari prime minister. Witkoff's direct way of negotiating helped create a six-week ceasefire agreement. This agreement included exchanging 33 hostages held by Hamas for about 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. It also aimed for more exchanges and an end to the war.
Witkoff's approach was different from usual diplomatic methods. He put pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to finish the deal. He emphasized that Trump wanted the deal done. This helped achieve in a few weeks what had been discussed for almost a year.
On January 29, 2025, Witkoff went to Israel and entered Gaza. This was a rare visit for an American official. He went to personally check on the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
In March 2025, the Israeli government stopped goods and supplies from entering the Gaza Strip. The Israeli prime minister's office said they were following a plan Witkoff had suggested. This new plan did not mention Israel leaving parts of Gaza after the first group of hostages were released.
Instead of continuing to the second phase of the ceasefire, Israel suggested a new plan. This plan was called the "Witkoff plan." In it, Hamas would release the Israeli captives for a 50-day ceasefire extension. However, Israel would still be able to return to war. Hamas rejected this new proposal because it was different from the agreement made in January 2025.
On March 23, 2025, Witkoff blamed Hamas for new fighting in Gaza. He said Hamas had chances to stop fighting and accept a deal for a longer ceasefire.
In April 2025, Witkoff had a meeting in Paris with two Israeli officials. This was before the US-led nuclear talks with Iran. He represented the Trump administration's efforts for a peaceful solution. The first high-level meetings were held in Oman on April 12, 2025. Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi led these talks. After Israeli strikes in Iran in June 2025, talks about nuclear energy between the US and Iran were stopped.
Working with Russia
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President Trump has made Witkoff his special helper to Russian president Vladimir Putin. By March 2025, Witkoff had become the main way for the Trump administration to talk with the Russian presidency.
On February 11, 2025, Trump sent Witkoff to Moscow. There, he met with President Putin. He was in charge of talks that led to a prisoner exchange. This exchange freed U.S. citizen Marc Fogel from a Russian prison. In return, Russian citizen Alexander Vinnik was released. Witkoff said that Putin and Trump "had a great friendship."
Witkoff said he spent a lot of time with Putin during the trip. He said he had developed a "friendship and relationship" with Putin.
Witkoff has been involved in talks between the United States and Russia to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine. On February 16, Witkoff said that Ukraine and Europe would not be left out of any future peace negotiations in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. On February 18, American and Russian groups met in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. They met to create a plan for more peace talks.
On March 21, 2025, Witkoff spoke in an interview. He said the biggest issue in talks were the "so-called four regions." Russia took over Crimea in 2014. Then, it took over four more Ukrainian areas during its 2022 invasion. He said that people in those areas spoke Russian. He also said that many people there wanted to be under Russian rule. However, these polls were held by Russia during its invasion. Many countries, including the U.S. and Ukraine, called them unfair.
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In the interview, Witkoff spoke positively about Vladimir Putin. He called Putin a "great guy" and "super smart." Witkoff said, "I liked him, I think he was honest." He also said, "I don't regard Putin as a bad guy." According to Witkoff, Putin told him he prayed for "his friend" Donald Trump after an attempt to harm Trump. He also said Putin had a beautiful painting of President Trump made by a Russian artist. Putin gave it to Witkoff to take to President Trump.
Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said that Ukrainians were "very disturbed" by Witkoff's comments. They believed he had been influenced by Russian information that was not true.
Views and Opinions
Egypt and Middle East Stability
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In March 2025, Witkoff worried that the war in Gaza could make countries like Egypt and Saudi Arabia unstable. He said that many young people in Egypt do not have jobs. He also mentioned that Egypt is facing financial difficulties.
Syria's Leadership
In March 2025, Witkoff suggested that Syria's new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, might have changed. This was despite his past connections to a group called Al-Qaeda.
Israel and Palestine Conflict
In 2024, Witkoff criticized the Biden administration for stopping some bomb shipments to Israel. However, he also said that members of Hamas are "not as extreme as they are portrayed." He praised Qatar for trying to help end the Gaza conflict.
In March 2025, Witkoff said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was focusing on destroying Hamas. He believed this was more important to Netanyahu than releasing Israeli hostages.
Russia and Ukraine Conflict
In 2018, Witkoff was against punishing Russia for taking over Crimea.
Witkoff has praised Russian president Putin. He has also seemed to support Russian government claims about its war against Ukraine. He said that Russia's invasion of Ukraine was "not necessarily" started by Russia. He also said that NATO played a big part in causing the conflict. He believes most people in Eastern Ukraine want to live under Russian rule.
Witkoff said he is sure that Putin will not invade Europe. He also believes Putin is not interested in the rest of Ukraine, only the parts Russia has already taken.
Iran's Nuclear Program
Witkoff supported Trump's efforts to find a peaceful solution for Iran's nuclear program. He has stated that Iran should stop its nuclear enrichment program as part of any agreement.
Personal Life
Witkoff has lived on the Upper East Side in Manhattan. In 1987, he married Lauren Jill Rappoport. They have three sons. In 2011, their 22-year-old son Andrew died due to addiction. After this, Witkoff became a strong supporter of addiction awareness and recovery efforts. He spoke about this issue at the 2024 Republican National Convention.
Their son Zach is a co-founder of a cryptocurrency company. Their son Alexander is a co-CEO of the Witkoff Group.
In 2019, Witkoff moved from New York City to Florida. He settled in Miami Beach. Since at least 2024, Witkoff has been in a relationship with Lauren Olaya.
Witkoff has been on the executive committee for the Real Estate Board of New York. He is also a trustee for the Intrepid Foundation. Since 2015, he has been on the board of trustees of Hofstra University.
See also
In Spanish: Steve Witkoff para niños
