The first face-to-face Russia-Ukraine talks since February wrapped up Wednesday after a second session of just under two hours. The one concrete result: an agreement in principle on what Jared Kushner called “the biggest humanitarian release of prisoners.”
Update, 1 p.m. ET: Putin aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed Kushner and Witkoff will meet Putin in Moscow on Thursday morning, Nov. 12. “We don’t yet know the results of the talks in Abu Dhabi. But they’re bringing something,” he said (Kommersant, via Meduza). Zelenskyy said he would meet the envoys in Dublin the same day.
Why it matters
After months without direct talks, a prisoner swap is the first deliverable — and the test of whether this track can produce anything bigger.
What they agreed
- Prisoner swap: Russia’s Vladimir Medinsky announced “a new large-scale prisoner exchange,” details “in the near future.” Ukraine’s Rustem Umerov confirmed it, per AP.
- Kushner: “We’re going to finalize the numbers tomorrow.” He called the talks “very substantive” but “pretty tough … after almost eight months of not being together” (The Guardian).
What’s still open
Kushner listed postwar security, guarantees, deconfliction and ceasefire monitoring — and said “the territorial issues … will be the hardest.” There is “no trust between the sides.”
Between the lines
- Europeans (E3, Italy, NATO, EU) were in Abu Dhabi but met separately from the trilateral talks, per RFE/RL.
- Kushner wants them in the format and hopes Putin will “give his blessing.” Medinsky said it’s unclear what Russia would discuss with the EU (Reuters, via The Guardian).
- G7 foreign ministers: talks on Europe’s future security “must include the Europeans.”
- The war didn’t pause: Ukraine reported strikes on six major power facilities overnight; Russia reported a drone-caused fire at the Ust-Luga port. Neither side’s claims are independently verified.
What’s next
Kushner and Steve Witkoff meet Putin in Moscow on Thursday, then fly to Dublin to brief Zelenskyy at the European Political Community summit. A Putin-Zelenskyy meeting “would be great,” Kushner said, but Russia wants “more progress” first.
Our view
A prisoner swap is not peace, but it’s not nothing. Thursday is the real test: numbers and a date for the next round mean the process is alive. New conditions about Europe would mean Abu Dhabi was just another pause.
FAQ
Did the talks produce a ceasefire? No. The only announced result is an agreement in principle on a large prisoner exchange.
When do U.S. envoys meet Putin? Thursday, Nov. 12, in Moscow, according to Kushner.
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Sergey Danilov
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