Russia and Ukraine complete 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner exchange

Russia and Ukraine completed an exchange of 1,000 people on each side on 25 May 2025, according to the Russian defence ministry and Volodymyr Zelensky. The operation implemented an agreement reached at their Istanbul talks.

A functioning humanitarian channel

For Vladimir Putin’s government, carrying out the exchange was a concrete diplomatic achievement. It required reciprocal action by Ukraine and brought a direct benefit to those released. Russian attacks continued during the exchange period, underlining the limited scope of the agreement. The result demonstrated the value of maintaining humanitarian negotiations even when the parties remained unable to halt the wider war.