Russia and Ukraine agree to largest prisoner exchange of the war after two days of U.S.-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi
Russian, Ukrainian and U.S. delegations at the talks in Abu Dhabi (ZDF)Russia and Ukraine agreed Wednesday to a large-scale exchange of prisoners of war at the close of two days of U.S.-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi, the first such meeting between the two sides in nine months. U.S. envoy Jared Kushner, who mediated the talks alongside special envoy Steve Witkoff, said the swap would be the largest humanitarian release of prisoners since Russia's full-scale invasion began nearly five years ago, with the final numbers to be set on Thursday.
"One of the positives is we agreed that we're going to have the biggest humanitarian release of prisoners, which we're going to finalize the numbers tomorrow," Kushner said after the talks ended. Vladimir Medinsky, who led the Russian delegation, and Rustem Umerov, who led Kyiv's delegation, both confirmed the planned exchange. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the two sides had discussed exchanging 1,000 prisoners each, possibly 1,500 each. A swap of that size would match or exceed the largest single exchange of the war, the 1,000-for-1,000 deal agreed at talks in Istanbul in May 2025. The most recent exchange took place on Oct. 23, when Ukraine brought home 270 people.
The agreement was the only concrete outcome of the two-day session. No ceasefire was agreed, and the two sides showed no sign of compromising on their core demands, above all territory. The talks were largely about humanitarian issues, including possible prisoner exchanges and returning Ukrainian civilians held in captivity, as well as children taken from the country, Zelenskyy said. Security guarantees were also discussed. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the meeting "very productive," while cautioning that a breakthrough on stopping the war will take time.
Kushner said he and Witkoff will travel to Moscow on Thursday to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, then fly to Dublin to meet with Zelenskyy. Umerov said Kyiv's delegation is expected to meet Wednesday with European officials. Moscow does not want European countries involved in the direct negotiations, though representatives of European governments, the European Union and NATO were in Abu Dhabi consulting with the Ukrainian delegation.
The talks took place against continued fighting on the front line, where little territory has changed hands this year. Overnight, Russia struck the southern Zaporizhzhia region and the eastern city of Kharkiv, wounding seven civilians and damaging property, officials said. Russia's Defense Ministry said air defenses downed 627 Ukrainian drones overnight, 150 of them over the region around St. Petersburg, and that the drones started a fire at the port of Ust-Luga, one of the main facilities for Russian oil exports, injuring three workers.
Sources: The Associated Press, "Russia, Ukraine agree to large prisoner exchange" (Nov. 11, 2026); Reuters, "Russian negotiator reports some progress after Ukraine talks, sees no EU role in process for now" (Nov. 11, 2026); Ukrainska Pravda, via bne IntelliNews, "Ukraine, Russia discuss prisoner swap of up to 1,500 each" (Nov. 11, 2026).
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