Russia and Ukraine Agree to Major Prisoner Exchange in Trump-Brokered Talks

Russian and Ukrainian negotiators agreed in principle to a large prisoner exchange after two days of U.S.-mediated talks, while leaving the exchange totals and the war’s central disputes unresolved.

Russia and Ukraine agreed in principle to a major exchange of prisoners of war on Wednesday, November 11, after two days of U.S.-mediated negotiations in Abu Dhabi. The humanitarian agreement was the clearest concrete result of the first direct talks between the two countries in nine months, but the delegations announced no breakthrough on ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and an administration envoy, described the planned release as the largest humanitarian prisoner exchange of the conflict. He said the parties expected to finalize the numbers on Thursday. Russian delegation chief Vladimir Medinsky and his Ukrainian counterpart, Rustem Umerov, confirmed the plan, while Medinsky emphasized that it remained an agreement “in principle.”

The size and timing are not yet final

No final total, list of names or exchange date was announced when the talks concluded. That distinction matters: the negotiators reached a framework for an exchange, not a completed transfer of prisoners. Russia and Ukraine have carried out repeated swaps during the war, including earlier releases mediated by the United Arab Emirates, but implementation still requires the sides to settle identities, numbers and logistics.

The announcement materially advances the talks Trump’s envoys opened on Tuesday. The first day produced four hours of negotiations and discussion of prisoners, detained civilians, children taken from Ukraine and postwar security guarantees. Wednesday’s agreement turns one part of that humanitarian agenda into a defined next step, even as the larger political settlement remains distant.

Trump envoys plan separate meetings with Putin and Zelenskyy

Kushner said he and special envoy Steve Witkoff would travel to Moscow on Thursday to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. They then plan to fly to Dublin to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Those separate meetings are expected to test whether the Trump administration can move beyond the prisoner issue and narrow differences over territory, security guarantees and Europe’s role in negotiations.

European governments, the European Union and NATO were not represented in the three-way negotiating room. Umerov said the Ukrainian delegation would brief European and NATO representatives who were in Abu Dhabi. Kushner said Washington wanted European governments included in discussions about a postwar security structure, because any durable arrangement would require their participation and support.

The central peace questions remain unresolved

Ukraine wants security guarantees strong enough to deter another invasion and rejects surrendering territory its forces still hold. Russia continues to press territorial demands and opposes Ukrainian membership in NATO. European officials have argued that talks about the continent’s security should follow a ceasefire, while Moscow has resisted a formal European role at this stage.

The two-day meeting therefore produced a potentially significant humanitarian result without resolving the questions driving the war. Kushner acknowledged that the parties do not trust each other. Fighting also continued during the negotiations, including Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities and large Ukrainian drone attacks reported by Russian officials.

The next verifiable milestones are the final prisoner totals, an agreed exchange date and confirmation that the releases occur. After that, attention will turn to the envoys’ meetings with Putin and Zelenskyy and whether the parties schedule another trilateral session. Until those steps happen, the prisoner framework should not be described as a ceasefire or a broader peace agreement.

Sources and image credit

The size and timing are not yet final

Trump envoys plan separate meetings with Putin and Zelenskyy

The central peace questions remain unresolved