Ukraine and Russia far apart in first direct conversations, but prisoner Swap agreed

More than three years after 1945 in Europe’s deadliest war, there was a small step forward for democracy on Friday.

Delegations from Ukraine and Russia came across conversations for the first time since March 2022 – a month after Moscow invaded his neighbor. The setting was a palace of Ottoman era on the banks of the Bosphorus in Istanbul.

Pressure and encouragement from Turkey and the US helped to get the warring parties there.

There were no handshakes, and half of the Ukrainian delegation was wearing camouflage fatigue – a reminder that their nation is being attacked.

The room was decorated with Ukrainian, Turkish and Russian flags – two of each – and a large flower arrangement – a world away from the shattered cities and a swollen cemetery of Ukraine.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, Hakan Fidan, told the delegations that there were two paths for us – one way led to peace and the other led to more death and destruction.

The conversations lasted less than two hours and sharp departments quickly emerged. The Kremlin set “new and unacceptable demands,” said a Ukrainian officer. That insisted that Kyiv withdraws his troops from large parts of his own territory, he said, in exchange for a cease -the fire.

Although there was no breakthrough about the crucial issue of a ceasefire – as expected – there is news about one tangible result.

Each party will return 1,000 prisoners of war to the other.

“This was the very good end of a very difficult day,” said the vice minister of Defense Serhiy Kyslytya of Ukraine and “potentially excellent news for 1,000 Ukrainian families.”

The Swap will take place soon, said the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Rustem Umerov, who led the delegation of his country. “We know the date,” he said, “we don’t announce it yet.”

He said that “the next step” should be a meeting between Zensky and Putin.

That request was “noted” according to the head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky – a presidential assistant. He said that the Russian delegation was satisfied with the conversations and was ready to continue contacts.

He said that the Russian delegation was satisfied with the conversations and was ready to continue contacts.

That was a change from Thursday when the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called President Zensky ‘a clown and a loser’.

But there are fears – under Ukraine and some of his allies – that Russia uses diplomacy to just buy time, to derive international pressure for a cease – the fire and try to prevent the 18th round of European sanctions. The EU says they are already in the making.

And although the two parties have now sat around the table, President Trump said that the only conversations that count that will be between him and President Putin.

He announced on Thursday, mid-flight on Air Force One, that “nothing will happen to Putin and I come together.”

It is unclear when that meeting will be. The spokesperson for Kremlin, Dmitry Peskov, says that top-level conversations “are definitely needed”, but preparing a TOP will take time.

When those conversations happen, it is unlikely that President Zensky will be invited.