Update, Nov. 11 at 8:29 a.m. Central: Russia and Ukraine said they agreed to a large exchange of prisoners of war as two days of U.S.-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi ended Wednesday, The Associated Press reported. The delegations announced no broader agreement to end the war.
Russian and Ukrainian delegations met for roughly four hours Tuesday in Abu Dhabi as the United States resumed its effort to broker an end to the war. The United Arab Emirates confirmed the opening of the talks, which brought officials from all three countries together for the first such discussions since February.
Prisoners and civilians were on the agenda
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the discussion focused largely on humanitarian issues, including prisoner exchanges, civilians held in captivity and Ukrainian children taken out of the country, The Associated Press reported. He said negotiators also discussed security guarantees. AP reported that another session was scheduled for Wednesday.
The talks included U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. In a readout of a call with Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Zelenskyy’s office said Ukrainian officials had also met with European representatives and that Kyiv wanted practical steps to de-escalate the fighting and credible guarantees for its security.
What to watch Wednesday
Neither the UAE announcement nor the Ukrainian readout announced an agreement. One immediate question is whether the delegations can turn Tuesday’s discussion of prisoner exchanges into specific commitments. The negotiations follow Russian strikes that wounded at least nine people in Ukraine before the delegations met.