World · Europe · 41 mins ago
Russia rules out territorial swaps in Ukraine peace talks
Russian and Ukrainian negotiators met with US mediators for two days of peace talks in Abu Dhabi, which ended on Wednesday.
Russia’s chief negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, said Moscow would not exchange territory with Ukraine as part of a peace deal.
He said Russia considers its own any territory reached by Russian forces.
US negotiator Jared Kushner called territory the hardest issue to resolve and said an agreement on Ukraine’s postwar security must wait for a territorial deal.
Medinsky said the sides had compared positions and found some common ground, but US mediators said mistrust and major differences remained.
The talks also produced an agreement on a large prisoner exchange.
Medinsky said Russia’s border buffer zone was already substantial and would continue to expand.
Vladimir Medinsky said Moscow considers territories reached by Russian troops to be Russian.
He said Russia sees no possibility of exchanging territories controlled by its forces with Ukraine.
Medinsky said a security zone along the border with Ukraine was already substantial and continued to expand.
The remarks came after two days of Russia-Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi ended on November 11.
US mediator Jared Kushner called the territorial issue the most difficult part of resolving the conflict, according to Vedomosti.
- Who
- Vladimir Medinsky, Russia’s chief negotiator in peace talks, made the remarks.
- What
- He said Moscow considers territories reached by Russian troops its own and rejects exchanging territory with Ukraine.
- When
- November 11, 2026.
- Where
- The remarks followed two days of talks in Abu Dhabi.
- Why
- Medinsky cited Vladimir Putin’s words and said past concessions had led to greater losses, in his assessment.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Vladimir Putin announced a decision to create a buffer zone along the Russian-Ukrainian border.
Two days of talks involving Russia, the United States and Ukraine ended in Abu Dhabi.
Medinsky said the sides had compared positions and reached understanding on some issues.
Jared Kushner called the territorial issue the most difficult part of resolving the conflict.
- Speaker
- Vladimir Medinsky
- Territory position
- Moscow considers territories reached by Russian troops its own
- Territorial swaps
- Medinsky said he saw no possibility of exchanging territories controlled by Russian forces
- Talks
- Two days in Abu Dhabi, ending November 11, 2026
- Buffer zone announcement
- May 22, 2025
4 sources
Russia refused to discuss ceasefire or territorial issues on second day of Abu Dhabi peace talks, shifting focus to European security architecture, RBC-Ukraine reports
Мединский: там где ступила нога русского солдата, это Россия
Russia's negotiator on Ukraine rejects option of territorial swaps with Kyiv, TASS reports
What people are saying
where our Russian soldier has set foot, those are our [lands]