There's a bit of progress to report out of Turkey as initial peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have resulted in an agreed swap of prisoners of war. 

Initially, the plan was for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to meet face-to-face on Thursday. However, that fell apart after Putin announced he would be sending a delegation rather than attending himself. 

READ MORE: Could Trump Drop in on Putin–Zelensky Meeting Thursday? He Says He Just Might

New: Putin Chickens Out, Won't Attend Peace Talks With Zelensky in Turkey Thursday

Still, as noted, there is some positive news to report out of the meeting between the two nations, even if it did not include their respective leaders as originally anticipated. 

ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) — 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.

...

At the brief Istanbul talks, 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, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.

Russian presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, who headed Moscow’s delegation, said both sides agreed to provide each other with detailed ceasefire proposals and Ukraine requested the heads of state meeting, which Russia took under consideration.

Moreover, it sounds as though both sides are open to continued discussion. 

President Donald Trump obviously did not attend the meeting, as was once speculated when it still appeared that Putin and Zelensky would be in attendance. However, he clearly would like to see continued progress on that front. He addressed it in his parting remarks as he prepared to leave the Middle East:

.@POTUS in Abu Dhabi: "It's been a tremendous time and now it's time to go back home. My daughter had a baby — I'm going to go back home and see that little baby." ❤️ pic.twitter.com/ATwbJQPiRp

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 16, 2025

In addition to vowing to get home to meet his new grandson, Trump said: 

"It's been a tremendous time, and now it's time to go back home. My daughter had a baby — I'm going to go back home and see that little baby. 

"And then we get back to a lot of work — we'll see what happens with Russia and Ukraine. I think it's something that is just — we've got to stop the killing. Five thousand people a week — 5,000 young people a week, on average, being killed in a war that is going nowhere. It's a shame. It should have never happened." 

And a face-to-face meeting between Trump and Putin may be in the offing as well. 

Trump, who has pressed both Moscow and Kyiv for an end to the conflict, said a meeting between himself and Russian President Vladimir Putin would happen “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.

The sides remain far apart but have at least taken a step in the right direction. 

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