Abu Dhabi Talks End With a Large Prisoner Exchange Agreed but No Ceasefire Breakthrough

Russia and Ukraine agreed to a large prisoner-of-war exchange after two days of U.S.-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi. But the talks produced no major breakthrough toward ending the war.

The talks began on Tuesday, Nov. 10, and ended on Wednesday, Nov. 11. The first day lasted about four hours, and the second day ended in under two hours. U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner mediated the talks.

The prisoner exchange was the substantive result of the talks. Kushner said the two sides agreed to the largest humanitarian release of prisoners. The final numbers are to be settled on Thursday, Nov. 12.

Russian delegation head Vladimir Medinsky and Ukrainian delegation head Rustem Umerov also confirmed the planned exchange. Medinsky, however, described the agreement as in principle. No figure and no date for the release were announced.

There was no progress on a ceasefire or territory. The two sides reached no agreement on ending the war or a ceasefire, and no date was set for a next round. The session was the first meeting between the delegations since February, and the first face-to-face meeting in nine months.

The U.S. envoys’ schedule continues. Kushner said he and Witkoff will travel to Moscow on Nov. 12 to meet President Vladimir Putin. They will then fly to Dublin to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

For the exchange to actually happen, the numbers must be finalized on Thursday. If they are, the exchange could become the largest prisoner release since the war began. But given the “in principle” wording, it cannot be treated as completed until the details are settled.