In an interview with US broadcaster Fox News, Zelensky said he hoped for a positive outcome from Witkoff's meeting with Putin.
He described his own talks with Witkoff in Oslo on Tuesday as productive and said Ukraine was ready for diplomacy.
Zelensky thanked the United States for restoring intelligence sharing and said he hoped restrictions on the Starlink and Starshield satellite services would soon be lifted.
He said it was important to freeze the fighting and move toward diplomacy and an agreement that includes security guarantees, while praising President Donald Trump's calls for ceasefires.
'Don't speak about us without us'
"It's important to negotiate trilaterally," Zelensky told Fox News, adding that it would be better if European countries could also be included.
"I always said that we are open to negotiate in any format, any topic. I just ask: but don't speak about us without us, please," he added.
Russia frees retired US teacher
Meanwhile, Russia released Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old retired US teacher who had been held in the country since 2022, as Witkoff met Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday.
Hubbard was taken to Pulkovo Airport to return to the United States, the Reuters news agency reported.
Putin announced Hubbard's release during his meeting with Witkoff. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said Putin had freed Hubbard at Trump's request.
Trump confirmed the release in a Truth Social post, saying the United States had not been required to give anything in return.
"The United States, out of respect for President Trump, was not required to give anything in return — an unprecedented situation for Russia. There was no 'swap' necessary for this release. This major return should have taken place long ago through the Biden Administration, which got nowhere in its negotiations with the Kremlin," Trump wrote.
"Welcome home Stephen, it's great to have you back," he added.
Hubbard had been serving a prison sentence of nearly seven years in Russia after being convicted of mercenary activity in a closed-door trial, according to Reuters.
He was detained in April 2022 in the eastern Ukrainian city of Izium after Russian forces captured the city. Russian authorities alleged that he had been manning a Ukrainian military checkpoint as part of a Ukrainian territorial defence unit, but his family and lawyer disputed the allegations.
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Source: Reuters, IAR/PAP