Russia, Ukraine confirm prisoner swap after Turkiye talks
Russia and Ukraine have exchanged prisoners of war as the two countries continue to trade attacks, despite diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.
Officials in Moscow and Kyiv confirmed the swap on Thursday but did not disclose the number of prisoners released.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X that the 'warriors of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, and the State Border Guard Service' were returning home.
'Most of them had been in captivity since 2022. We are doing everything possible to find each person, to verify the information on every name,' he said.
'We must bring all our people home. I thank everyone who is helping us in this effort.'
At the same time, Russia's Ministry of Defence said on Telegram that another group of Russian soldiers had returned from Ukraine.
'Currently, Russian servicemen are on the territory of the Republic of Belarus, where they are receiving the necessary psychological and medical assistance,' the ministry said.
The soldiers will then be taken to Russia for treatment and rehabilitation, the ministry added.
During their direct meeting in Turkiye on June 2, Russia and Ukraine pledged to swap at least 1,000 soldiers in one of the few points that both sides have agreed upon and shown cooperation since the war began in 2022.
But future talks to discuss a path to end the war have stalled as the gulf between Moscow and Kyiv has remained unchanged.
Russia has repeatedly said any territory it has taken during the war must be retained to achieve a ceasefire. However, Kyiv has rejected giving up its land.
Amid the latest prisoner exchange, Russian air strikes on Ukraine killed at least one person and wounded two others in the southern region of Kherson, according to the regional mayor.
Moreover, Russia announced that its forces had captured two Ukrainian villages in the Donetsk region as Ukraine's army chief, Oleksandr Syrskii, ordered defensive lines to be built faster as Russian forces take more ground towards the Dnipropetrovsk region.
Meanwhile, Zelenskyy signed an accord on Thursday with the Council of Europe to put top Russian officials on trial for the invasion of Ukraine.
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