A prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine is reportedly underway, as talks for peace in the conflict still appear to be making little progress.
The swap began Friday but was not yet completed, a Ukrainian official told the Associated Press.
A prisoner swap of 1,000 prisoners on each side was agreed to during talks between the two sides in Turkey last week, which was the first face-to-face meeting for peace efforts between the two sides since 2022.
Despite the talks last week, there has been little known progress in negotiations to end the war even as President Donald Trump pushes both sides to make a deal. Trump expressed optimism that the ongoing prisoner swap could lead to “something big” in a post on Truth Social.
“A major prisone[r] swap was just completed between Russia and Ukraine. It will go into effect shortly. Congratulations to both sides on this negotiation. This could lead to something big???” Trump said, despite the completion of the prisoner swap not yet being confirmed.
Trump talked with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky separately over the phone earlier this week. The U.S. president expressed optimism that peace talks could begin, despite several failed attempts to start substantive talks since he returned to office in January.
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Following his phone calls on Monday, Trump suggested that “Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War” and suggested his call with Putin went well.
Prior to the calls, the Trump administration had become more impatient with the lack of progress toward peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in their conflict. Officials in the administration have suggested that if there is no deal to be made, the United States could walk away as a mediator.