Russia-Ukraine peace talks end after less than 2 hours with deal to swap POWs

Police are stationed outside a gate prior to talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations at the Dolmabache palace, in Istanbul, Turkiye, Friday, May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Dilara Acikgoz)

ISTANBUL, Turkey — The first direct Russia-Ukraine peace talks since the early weeks of Moscow’s 2022 invasion ended after less than two hours Friday, and while both sides agreed on a large prisoner swap, they clearly remained far apart on key conditions for ending the fighting.

One such condition for Ukraine, backed by its western allies, is a temporary ceasefire as a first step toward a peaceful settlement. The Kremlin has pushed back against such a truce, which remains elusive.

“We haven’t received a Russian `yes’ on this basic point,” Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhii said after the talks. “If you want to have serious negotiations, you have to have guns silenced.”

But Russian delegation head Vladimir Medinsky pronounced himself “satisfied with the outcome,” adding that Moscow was ready to continue contacts.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he discussed the talks with U.S. President Donald Trump and the leaders of France, Germany, the U.K. and Poland. In a post on X from a European leadership meeting in Albania, he urged “tough sanctions” against Moscow if it rejects “a full and unconditional ceasefire and an end to killings.”

In Istanbul, Kyiv and Moscow agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each, according to the heads of both delegations, in what would be their biggest such swap.

Both sides also discussed a ceasefire and a meeting between their heads of state, according to chief Ukrainian delegate, Defence Minister Rustem Umerov.

Medinsky, an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, said both sides agreed to provide each other with detailed ceasefire proposals, with Ukraine requesting the heads of state meeting, which Russia took under consideration.

“The pressure on the Russian Federation must continue,” said Serhii Kyslytsia, Ukraine’s first deputy foreign minister and part of Kyiv’s delegation. “We should not really relax at this point.”

New, `unacceptable conditions’

During the talks, a senior Ukrainian official said Russia introduced new, “unacceptable demands” to withdraw Ukrainian forces from huge swaths of territory. The official, who was not authorized to make official statements, spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. The proposal had not been previously discussed, the official said.

The Ukrainian side reiterated it was focused on achieving real progress -- an immediate ceasefire and a pathway to substantive diplomacy -- “just like the U.S., European partners, and other countries proposed,” the official added.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Tykhii confirmed the Russian delegation “voiced a number of things that we deem unacceptable,” but added: “This is something that Russians usually voice, and we were keeping to our line.”

The two sides sat opposite each other at a U-shaped table in the Dolmabahce Palace but remained far apart in their conditions for ending the war. Trump, who has pressed for an end to the conflict, said he would meet with Putin “as soon as we can set it up.”

“I think it’s time for us to just do it,” Trump told reporters in Abu Dhabi as he wrapped up a trip to the Middle East.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan opened the talks by urging participants “to take advantage of this opportunity,” adding it was “critically important that the ceasefire happens as soon as possible.”

In a social media post, Fidan called the POW swap as a “confidence-building measure” and said the parties had agreed in principle to meet again.

Zelenskyy seeks European unity

Zelenskyy was in Tirana, Albania, with leaders of 47 European countries to discuss security, defence and democratic standards against the backdrop of the war. He met with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

“Pressure on Russia must be maintained until Russia is ready to end the war,” Zelenskyy said on X, posting a photo of the leaders during the call, the second for the group since May 10.

Speaking to reporters after the call with Trump, Starmer said the Russian position “is clearly unacceptable.”

While he didn’t say what the Europeans’ response might involve, some of them pressed for new sanctions, with the European Union likely to adopt new measures as soon as Tuesday.

Macron said it was “unacceptable that, for a second time, Russia hasn’t responded to the demands made by the Americans, supported by Ukraine and the Europeans. No ceasefire, and therefore no meeting at a decision-making level. And no response.”

Merz said diplomatic efforts so far “have unfortunately failed because of Russia’s lack of readiness to take the first steps in the right direction now.”

“But we will not give up,” he added. All three said Kyiv and its allies in Europe will continue to coordinate their efforts.

Diplomatic manoeuvring

Both countries engaged in diplomatic manoeuvring this week as they tried to show Trump that they are eager to negotiate, although he expressed frustration with the slow progress and threatened to punish foot-dragging.

On Thursday, Putin spurned an offer by Zelenskyy to meet face-to-face in Turkey. Zelenskyy accused Moscow of not making a serious effort to end the war by sending a low-level delegation.

Ukraine has accepted a U.S. and European proposal for a full, 30-day ceasefire, but Putin has effectively rejected it by imposing far-reaching conditions.

Commenting on a possible Trump-Putin meeting, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov appeared to indicate that momentum for such a summit is building. He told reporters that top-level talks were “certainly needed,” but added that preparing a summit would take time.

Fighting continues in Ukraine

Russia, meanwhile, is preparing a fresh military offensive, Ukrainian government and Western military analysts say.

Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov was in Minsk to discuss joint military drills in September and deliveries of new weapons to Belarus. Zelenskyy has warned that the military buildup in Belarus, which borders NATO members Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, could serve as a cover for future attacks.

A Friday drone attack on the northeastern city of Kupiansk killed a 55-year-old woman and wounded four men, said Oleh Syniehubov, head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration..

Russia’s invasion has killed more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians, the U.N. says, and razed towns and villages. Tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers have died, and likely a larger number of Russian troops, officials and analysts say.

One Ukrainian soldier told AP he wasn’t hopeful about the talks.

“I don’t think they will agree on anything concrete, because summer is the best time for war,” said the soldier, who used the call sign “Corsair” in accordance with Ukrainian military rules. “The enemy is trying to constantly escalate the situation.”

But he said many of his comrades “believe that by the end of the year there will be peace, albeit an unstable one, but peace.”

Before the talks, Ukrainian officials met with national security advisers from the U.S., France, Germany and the U.K. to coordinate positions, the senior Ukrainian official told AP. The U.S. team was led by retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump‘s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, while Umerov and presidential office chief Andriy Yermak represented Ukraine, the official said.

A three-way meeting between Turkey, the U.S. and Ukraine also took place, Turkish Foreign Ministry officials said. The U.S. side included Secretary of State Marco Rubio as well as Kellogg.

On Thursday, Rubio said he believed a breakthrough was only possible is a meeting between Trump and Putin.

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Article written by Hanna Arhirova, Andrew Wilks and Lorne Cook, The Associated Press

Cook reported from Brussels. Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Llazar Semini in Tirana, Albania, contributed.