US President Donald Trump said on Friday that a big prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine has been completed. He posted on his social media platform, Truth Social:
“A major prisoner 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??”?

But news agency Reuters said the prisoner exchange is still happening and has not finished yet. The announcement comes after a Ukrainian military intelligence official said Ukraine gave Russia a list of 1,000 prisoners of war to prepare for the swap.

When and how was the prisoner swap decided?

The deal for the prisoner swap was made earlier this month in Istanbul. This happened during the first direct talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials in more than three years. The war between Russia and Ukraine started in 2022 and is one of the deadliest in Europe since World War Two. Many soldiers from both sides have been hurt or killed, but no exact numbers are published. Also, tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians have died because of attacks on cities by Russian forces.

Is there a chance for peace soon?

Ukraine wants a 30-day ceasefire right now. But Russia, which started the war and controls about one-fifth of Ukraine’s land, says it will not stop fighting unless certain conditions are met. Ukraine says those conditions are "non-starters". Moscow says it wants peace talks to solve the "root causes" of the war. These causes include demands that Ukraine give up more land, disarm, and not join military groups in the West. Ukraine has refused these demands, saying they mean surrender and threaten its safety.

President Trump, who has changed US policy to accept some of Russia’s views on the war, said he might increase sanctions on Russia if peace talks fail. But after talking to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump decided not to act yet.

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