US envoys broker largest Russia-Ukraine prisoner swap yet after Putin and Zelensky talks
US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner spent Thursday shuttling between Vladimir Putin in Moscow and Volodymyr Zelensky in Dublin. They came away with a deal on the largest prisoner exchange of the war and a pledge to bring Europe into the next round of talks, but no sign that Russia has softened on territory.
A day of shuttle diplomacy
The envoys met Putin in the Kremlin before flying to Ireland, where European leaders had gathered and Zelensky was waiting. Kushner told reporters in Dublin they had travelled to Moscow via Latvia after talks in Abu Dhabi, Interfax-Ukraine reported.
The Abu Dhabi session brought the first direct talks between Ukrainian and Russian representatives in nine months, AP reported, but produced no major breakthrough beyond the prisoner deal.
The prisoner exchange
Kushner said the final terms of the exchange had been agreed in Moscow, where Putin's team included aides Yuri Ushakov, Kirill Dmitriev and Vladimir Medinsky, according to Interfax-Ukraine.
This will be the largest prisoner-of-war exchange, as Steve and Jared told me, and our soldiers will come home.
Europe at the table
Zelensky has long pushed for European delegates to join the negotiations. Witkoff told Russian state TV after the Kremlin meeting that Europeans would take part in the next round. "They are our partners and it's important to us that they take part," he said.
The EU's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, told the BBC that the move showed the Kremlin "now realised that Europe is a big player," but she doubted Russia had momentum toward a deal. Zelensky said the next round could be held in the United Arab Emirates or Switzerland, Interfax-Ukraine reported.
| Who | What they said on Thursday |
|---|---|
| Jared Kushner | Swap terms final; Putin "willing to give it a try" on Europe |
| Steve Witkoff | Europeans will join the next round |
| Vladimir Putin | Only one line of demarcation: the state border |
| Volodymyr Zelensky | Welcomed Europe's "voice" in the talks |
Sources: BBC News; Interfax-Ukraine.
The gap that remains
Putin told the envoys that territory remains a key point of contention, the BBC reported. "For us there is only one line of demarcation: the line of the state border," he said.
Kyiv has refused Putin's demand to give up the parts of eastern Donbas it still controls.
Friction with Washington
Tensions with the US were also on show. Before meeting the envoys, Zelensky said Ukraine's military again faced "systematic" restrictions on Starshield, the military version of SpaceX's Starlink service, making it harder to intercept Russian jet-powered drones, the BBC reported. He said Kyiv was trying to resolve the issue with the American side.