Russia-Ukraine peace talks end after less than 2 hours with deal to swap POWs but no ceasefire

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.”