Not much came out of the May 16th abbreviated meeting in Istanbul, or the lengthy May 19th phone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin . . . at least, as far as negotiations to end Putin’s war against Ukraine is concerned. But on the plus side, agreement was reached to begin an immediate exchange of an estimated 1,000 prisoners of war from each side.

And on Friday, the first 780 people — 270 soldiers and 120 civilians on each side — got to go home.

The swap — the largest since the start of the war in February of 2022 — took place at the Belarus-Ukraine border, and is to continue throughout this weekend.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky called it “perhaps the only real result” of the earlier talks, while Donald Trump — ever the cockeyed optimist — posted:

“Congratulations to both sides on this negotiation. This could lead to something big???” [RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service, May 23, 2025.]

Unfortunately, Putin’s continued delays and accelerated demands make Trump’s hoped-for “something big” look less and less likely. But at least there is one cause for celebration this week: the hundreds of joyous family reunions taking place on both sides of the border.

And we can all be grateful for that.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
5/25/25