Amidst a noticeable strain in global politics, the US and Russia conducted a prisoner exchange in Abu Dhabi on April 10, 2025. The prisoner exchange was facilitated by security from both nations. Ksenia Karelina, who’s from L.A. and a dual citizen of both Russia and the United States, and Arthur Petrov, a dual German-Russian citizen.
As per the Wall Street Journal, the 34-year-old dual citizen was first arrested in Russia in 2024 when she visited her grandparents. She was charged in a Russian penal colony for donating $51.80 to a Ukrainian charity, an act Russian authorities deemed supportive of the Ukrainian military, and given 12 12-year sentences.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Karelina’s lawyer confirmed the release on Thursday of the former ballet dancer. In exchange for Karelina, America released Arthur Petrov, a dual German-Russian citizen who had been arrested in Cyprus in 2023. The 33-year-old man was accused of attempting to sneak in microelectronics to Russia, allegedly for use by Russian military-linked enterprises in breach of U.S. sanctions.
According to AlJazeera, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and another senior Russian intelligence officer conducted the negotiations for the swap. “Today, President Trump brought home another wrongfully detained American from Russia,” Ratcliffe told the Journal. “I’m proud of the CIA officers who worked tirelessly to support this effort, and we appreciate the government of the UAE for enabling the exchange.”
This case happens to be the third high-profile exchange between the two nations and the second since President Donald Trump took office in January 2025. While Donald Trump has publicly said he wants better ties with Russia with a pure intention to bring global peace, his administration has failed to convince Russia to pull back on Ukraine.
According to CNN, last month, while talking about his phone call with President Vladimir Putin, he hinted at the possibility of there being World War III if the United States were to get involved in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
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Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, and Donald Trump mentioned that he and Putin had reached “an understanding” that they would be “working quickly to have a complete ceasefire and, ultimately, an end to the terrible War between Russia and Ukraine.”
However, the proposed ceasefire was ultimately rejected, and Russia launched a massive attack, targeting infrastructure and hospitals just mere hours after the call. The attacks killed one person and wounded 14 within the same week in March, according to a CNN tally of casualty figures shared by Ukrainian officials.
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Zelenskyy said Wednesday that “Putin’s words are at odds with reality” following the overnight strikes. Furthermore, Zelenskyy spoke to Telegram after the attacks. He said, “Today, Putin de facto rejected the proposal for a complete ceasefire. It would be right for the world to reject in response any attempts by Putin to drag out the war.”
Therefore, as per certain reports, Trump has faced significant constraints that limit his ability to reset relations with Moscow, and despite media reports repeatedly claiming that Donald Trump has almost closed a win-win deal with Putin, it remains false.
The reality is far different. Russian officials are increasingly skeptical that even limited cooperation is still possible. If the next U.S. president comes from the Democratic Party, such collaboration is likely to be even more challenging.
