Two days of talks between Russia, Ukraine and the United States in Abu Dhabi ended with an agreement on a prisoner exchange, which both sides confirmed, and with no breakthrough on a ceasefire or on territory. Everything else, from the scale of the exchange to the role of the Europeans, so far rests on statements by individual participants.
Abu Dhabi, 10–11 November
- 2 days
of talks - more than 1,000
people from each side, according to Zorin - up to 1,500
people from each side, according to Zelensky - 2–3 weeks
period for the exchange, according to Zorin
According to AP, Euronews, RFE/RL and CBC
- 2 days
What both sides confirmed
Russia and Ukraine agreed on a large exchange of prisoners of war, AP reported: both sides said so, and the talks, mediated by the United States, ended without a breakthrough on ending the war. US envoy Jared Kushner announced the agreement, and the heads of the delegations, Ukraine’s Rustem Umerov and Russia’s Vladimir Medinsky, confirmed it, but gave no details on timing or scale.
What only one side says
The figures for the exchange are given differently. Zelensky said in Dublin that the exchange could cover up to 1,000 or even up to 1,500 people from each side. Russian Lieutenant General Alexander Zorin, TASS reported, said that the exchange would include more than 1,000 people from each side and could take place within two to three weeks. Kushner added that the final number would be determined on Thursday. The order of magnitude matches, but nobody has named an exact number or date.
Europeans outside the door
European representatives were in Abu Dhabi but did not take part in the trilateral talks; they consulted separately with Ukrainian and American officials. Medinsky, according to Euronews, said the Russian delegation had not talked with the Europeans and questioned the appropriateness of their presence. Zelensky, by contrast, called it positive. Medinsky, The Hill reports, called Europe’s future security architecture a central point of the talks, while Kushner and Witkoff are pushing for a settlement on the postwar arrangement, guarantees for Ukraine and European security that takes Russia’s concerns into account.
What comes next and what does not
Kushner and Witkoff will travel on Thursday to Moscow to meet Vladimir Putin, then to Dublin to see Zelensky, Kushner said. Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Ukrainian president’s office, called the talks tough and said Ukraine’s position had not changed. Neither side announced agreement on a ceasefire or on territory.
The CSTO: same day, different table
On the same day, 11 November, the Collective Security Council of the CSTO, of which Kazakhstan is a member, met in Moscow. The organisation stripped Armenia of its voting rights over unpaid dues. Secretary General Taalatbek Masadykov stressed that this does not annul its membership and that expulsion was not on the summit’s agenda. The decision, Meduza reports, is also recorded in the summit declaration.
Article 25 of the charter, which is cited, provides for loss of voting rights for non-payment of dues and failure to fill quota positions; to apply it, dues must go unpaid for two consecutive years. A member without a vote remains a member: so the secretary general said.
How to read it
The prisoner exchange both sides described in the same words. Everything else still carries surnames: “according to Zorin”, “according to Zelensky”, “said Kushner”. Until the statements match, they remain statements.
