Talks With Moscow Limited to Prisoner Swaps, Not Ending War – Umerov

Ukraine and Russia are not holding negotiations to end the war or agree to a ceasefire, but contacts continue on humanitarian issues such as prisoner exchanges.

Rustem Umerov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, told CNN that discussions with Moscow remain limited.

“At the moment, we continue the humanitarian part, where we release and exchange prisoners of war,” Umerov said.

Umerov headed the Ukrainian delegations during this year’s Istanbul negotiations with Moscow, when he served as Ukraine’s defense minister.

While prisoner swaps continue, Umerov warned that Russia is preparing to intensify its assault. He said Moscow may attempt up to 1,000 strikes a day against Ukraine by the end of the year, using drones plus cruise and ballistic missiles.

“Russia is trying to increase the number of attacks to a thousand attacks per day. And it shows that there is no big intention from Russia to end the war,” he said.

Russia launched a record 805 drones in a single night during an attack on Sept. 7.

No progress on peace talks

Umerov added that Kyiv is anticipating bilateral and trilateral meetings at the leadership level – involving the US, Ukraine, and Russia – as agreed by European leaders, President Volodymyr Zelensky, and US President Donald Trump in Washington in August, following the Putin-Trump summit in Alaska.

Following his one-on-one talks with Putin, Trump seemed confident that Moscow and Kyiv would carry out high-level direct negotiations involving both leaders.

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However, speaking to reporters almost two weeks after the Alaska summit, that confidence appeared to have evaporated.

“I don’t know if they’ll meet. Maybe they will, maybe they won’t,” he said.

Putin pushes for Moscow talks ‘unacceptable’ for Kyiv

Russian President Vladimir Putin has suggested Zelensky come to Moscow for direct talks, most recently at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok on Sept. 5.

He pledged “a one hundred percent guarantee” of Zelensky’s safety, while casting doubt on whether any breakthrough could be reached.

“The best place for this is the capital of the Russian Federation, the Hero City of Moscow,” Putin said, rejecting the idea of talks in a third country.

Zelensky dismissed the invitation, saying it appeared designed to stall real negotiations. “If you want the meeting not to happen, you should invite me to Moscow,” he said.

Kyiv’s foreign minister earlier labeled the suggestion “unacceptable,” while noting that Ukraine is prepared for both bilateral and trilateral meetings if they occur at the leadership level.

Trump presses for a deal

Trump has positioned himself as a mediator, saying neither Putin nor Zelensky is ready for peace but that he remains “realistic and optimistic” about future talks.

At a joint press conference Thursday in London with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Trump said his relationship with Putin “would be easiest” for ending the invasion but added, “he’s let me down. He’s really let me down.”

Trump also tied the conflict to global energy markets. “If the price of oil comes down, Putin is going to drop out, he’s going to have no choice,” he said.

Starmer said the US and UK would “decisively increase the pressure on Putin” while continuing to support Ukraine militarily and economically.