Hopes for progress in elusive peace talks between Russia and Ukraine rose as a major prisoner exchange began Friday, roughly a week after officials from the two nations agreed to the swap of 1,000 prisoners during their first direct negotiations since Russian forces invaded Ukraine more than three years ago.

A senior Ukrainian official said on the condition of anonymity that the swap was underway, although the Russian government did not immediately confirm that it was happening. The Associated Press noted the Ukrainian comment came after Mr. Trump announced the exchange was occurring. “A major prisoners swap was just completed between Russia and Ukraine,” Mr. Trump wrote on the Truth Social platform, saying it would “go into effect shortly.”

“This could lead to something big???” wrote the president, whose administration has been trying to breathe life into end-of-war negotiations for months. Friday’s developments come days after Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin spoke by telephone, after which Mr. Trump said ceasefire talks between Moscow and Kyiv would start immediately. Mr. Trump spoke with Mr. Zelenskyy and European leaders after the Putin call.

There is “no daylight” among top administration officials on Mr. Trump’s decision to lift economic sanctions on Syria, a top State Department official told Threat Status this week after reports of dissension at the highest levels of U.S. foreign policy decision-making.

Michael Anton, director of the policy planning staff at the State Department, said in an interview with National Security Correspondent Ben Wolfgang that the key officials working on U.S.-Syria policy are aligned with the president’s policies. Mr. Anton specifically denied claims that he sought to slow-walk the president’s Syria policy and argued against Mr. Trump’s decision during a meeting Tuesday.

Still, the allegations touched off a round of speculation about whether officials inside the federal government, perhaps at high levels, are working to undermine the president’s policies — in this case, the lifting of sanctions on the Syrian government, now led by President Ahmad al-Sharaa, a figure with past ties to the terrorist group al Qaeda.

Mr. Kim is fuming over his regime’s botched launch this week of a new guided-missile destroyer that half-capsized and likely suffered damage to its hull — a launch that was supposed to have shown Pyongyang’s naval advancements since gaining technical support from Moscow in exchange for backing Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Last month, North Korea successfully launched its first-ever guided-missile destroyer. On Wednesday, a vessel believed to be the second ship in the class — with the same tonnage as the first, 5,000 tons — was launched from a yard in the city of Chongjin, on the country’s east coast.

But the launch went awry, according to North Korean state media, which detailed Mr. Kim’s outrage in response. He delivered the stern assessment that the screwup “could not be tolerated” and solemnly warned five state institutes of their responsibility. He demanded the “immediate restoration” of the warship by late June, when a party plenary is scheduled.

Two Israeli Embassy staff members were shot outside the Capital Jewish Museum Wednesday night during a Young Diplomats Reception hosted by the American Jewish Committee, writes Sean Durns, who notes that “the alleged shooter, a 30-year-old Chicago man named Elias Rodriguez, reportedly chanted ‘free, free Palestine’ as he was taken into custody.”

“The meaning has never been clearer: ‘Freeing Palestine’ means killing Jews or those who believe in the Jewish state’s right to exist,” he writes, asserting that the attack in Washington reveals a war in which Jews and supporters of Israel are being targeted “far from that tiny nation’s shores.”

“The war is waged by Iran and its proxies and also a coalition of academics and student radicals,” writes Mr. Durns, a senior research analyst at the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis. “It is emboldened by legacy media outlets, certain policymakers and even mainstream podcasters.”

Clifford D. May writes that he’s one of many people who have been “duped by the Qataris.” Mr. May, founder and president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a contributor to Threat Status, highlights an expose that Frannie Block and Jay Solomon published recently in The Free Press titled “How Qatar Bought America.”

“Their in-depth investigation reveals that ‘Qatar has spent almost $100 billion to establish its legitimacy in Congress, universities, newsrooms, think tanks and corporations,’” writes Mr. May. “They conclude: ‘What does Qatar want in return? A seat at the table. A shield from criticism. A U.S. foreign policy that serves Doha.’

“Duped no more, I now understand that implies a foreign policy that serves the Muslim Brotherhood,” Mr. May writes. “I’m confident our Saudi and Emirati friends would agree.”

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