Latest news with #prisonerswap
Al Jazeera
4 days ago
- General
- Al Jazeera
Russia and Ukraine agree to prisoner swap but peace talks stall in Istanbul
Russia and Ukraine have agreed to a new prisoner swap and the return of thousands of war dead during direct talks in Istanbul although little headway was made towards ending the war. The delegations met on Monday at the Ottoman-era Ciragan Palace in the Turkish city, and officials confirmed that both sides will exchange prisoners of war and the remains of 6,000 soldiers killed in combat. Negotiators from both sides confirmed they had reached a deal to swap all severely wounded soldiers as well as all captured fighters under the age of 25. 'We agreed to exchange all-for-all seriously wounded and seriously sick prisoners of war. The second category is young soldiers who are from 18 to 25 years old – all-for-all,' Ukraine's lead negotiator and Defence Minister Rustem Umerov told reporters in Istanbul. Russia's lead negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, said the swap would involve 'at least 1,000' on each side – topping the 1,000-for-1,000 POW exchange agreed at talks last month. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking from Vilnius, Lithuania, said the two parties 'exchanged documents through the Turkish side' and Kyiv was preparing for the next group of captives to be released. The Istanbul meeting marks the second direct dialogue in less than a month, but expectations were low. The talks on May 16 produced another major prisoner swap but failed to reach a ceasefire. 'The exchange of prisoners seems to be the diplomatic channel that actually works between Russia and Ukraine,' Al Jazeera correspondent Dmitry Medvedenko said, reporting from Istanbul. 'We've actually had exchanges of prisoners throughout this war, not in the numbers that have been happening as a result of these Istanbul talks,' Medvedenko added. Zelenskyy's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, said Kyiv also handed over a list of children it accuses Russia of abducting and demanded their return. As for a truce, Russia and Ukraine remain sharply divided. 'The Russian side continued to reject the motion of an unconditional ceasefire,' Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergiy Kyslytsya told reporters after the talks. Russia said it had offered a limited pause in fighting. 'We have proposed a specific ceasefire for two to three days in certain areas of the front line,' top negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said, adding this was needed to collect bodies of dead soldiers from the battlefield Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the talks 'magnificent'. 'My greatest wish is to bring together [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and Zelenskyy in Istanbul or Ankara and even add [United States President Donald] Trump along,' he said. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who chaired the talks, said the world was watching closely. He acknowledged the two sides had discussed the conditions for a ceasefire but no tangible outcome was announced. Oleksiy Goncharenko, a Ukrainian member of parliament, told Al Jazeera he was not very optimistic about the talks in Istanbul. 'Russia clearly shows that they don't want to end the war because Ukraine proposed a 30-days ceasefire in March, and the American and Europe proposition was the same, but only one country [Russia] refused,' Goncharenko said. Meanwhile, Ukraine has ramped up its military efforts far beyond the front lines, claiming responsibility for drone attacks on Sunday that it said damaged or destroyed more than 40 Russian warplanes. The operation targeted airbases in three distant regions – the Arctic, Siberia and the Far East – thousands of kilometres from Ukraine. 'This brilliant operation will go down in history,' Zelenskyy said, calling the raids a turning point in Ukraine's struggle. Ukrainian officials said the attacks crippled nearly a third of Russia's strategic bomber fleet. Vasyl Maliuk, head of the Security Service of Ukraine, said the mission had taken more than a year to plan. Zelenskyy said the setback for Russia's military would increase pressure on Moscow to return to the negotiating table. 'Russia must feel the cost of its aggression. That is what will push it towards diplomacy,' he said during his visit to Lithuania, where he met leaders from NATO's eastern flank and Nordic countries. Ukraine's air force, meanwhile, reported that Russia launched 472 drones on Sunday – the highest number since the start of its full-scale invasion in 2022 – aiming to exhaust Ukrainian air defences. Most of those drones targeted civilian areas, it said. On Monday, Russian forces bombarded southern Ukraine's Kherson region, killing three people and injuring 19, including two children. Separately, five people were killed and nine injured in attacks near Zaporizhzhia in the neighbouring Zaporizhia region. Russia's Ministry of Defence said its forces had intercepted 162 Ukrainian drones overnight across eight regions and Crimea while Ukraine said it shot down 52 out of 80 drones launched by Russia. Zelenskyy warned that if the Istanbul talks fail to deliver results, more sanctions against Russia will be necessary. 'If there's no breakthrough, then new, strong sanctions must follow – urgently,' he said.
Reuters
4 days ago
- General
- Reuters
Zelenskiy says Ukraine, Russia to exchange lists this week for POW swap
KYIV, June 2 (Reuters) - Ukraine and Russia agreed at talks in Istanbul on Monday next week to give each other lists of people they want included in a planned prisoner of war swap, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said. Zelenskiy told an online news briefing that negotiators for Russia and Ukraine agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners each, with the possibility of swapping an additional 200 POWs. He said there was also agreement to return the remains of killed service personnel, but this would take careful preparation. Zelenskiy also said Ukrainian negotiators gave their Russian counterparts a list of nearly 400 children it wanted Russia to return home to Ukraine, but that the Russian delegation agreed to work on returning only 10 of them. Further, the Ukrainian leader referred to a Ukrainian intelligence operation on Sunday, codenamed "Spider's Web", in which drones smuggled inside wooden sheds attacked Russian military airfields. He said the operation had helped to restore partners' confidence that Ukraine is able to continue waging its war against Russia's invasion.
Daily Mail
28-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Donald Trump agrees prisoner swap with Vladimir Putin after his 'crazy' remarks about Russian leader
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump have agreed to a prisoner swap, just days after the U.S. President branded his Russian counterpart 'crazy'. The deal was revealed on Tuesday by Russia's foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, who praised Trump as 'a man who wants results' as he spoke at an event in Turkey. Lavrov said the prisoner swap was agreed amid negotiations over the end of the war in Ukraine, which he accused European nations of attempting to 'sabotage'. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Sealed: Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump have agreed to a prisoner swap As Lavrov announced the deal, sources told the Kyiv Post that Trump was 'seriously considering' lifting all restrictions on how Ukraine uses weapons on Russia. The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to request for details on which prisoners are set to be exchanged. Tuesday's breakthrough comes four days after Trump separately revealed that a 'major prisoners swap' had taken place between Russia and Ukraine, believed to involve up to 1,000 prisoners on each side. Breakthrough: The prisoner swap was revealed by Russia 's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov Trump posted on his Truth Social platform at the time that the massive exchange 'could lead to something big', but did not offer details on what he wanted for brokering the deal. If the latest trade goes ahead, it will be the first since American teacher Marc Fogel was returned to the U.S. in February after over three years in a Russian prison. A number of Americans remain in Russian prisons that could form part of the deal, including 72-year-old Stephen Hubbard, who was sentenced last year to almost seven years in jail for fighting for Ukraine in the war. American soldier Gordon Black, 35, a U.S. staff sergeant, also remains in a Russian jail after he was arrested on dubious theft charges in 2024. The developments come after a whirlwind weekend of diplomacy from Trump where he told reporters that he was considering imposing new sanctions on Russia. Trump then launched a blistering attack on Putin where he said the Russian leader has gone 'absolutely crazy'. Trump condemned the Russians for escalating their strikes on Ukraine while negotiations were ongoing, which he said was resulting in the 'needless killing of a lot of people'. In a warning about the future of the former Soviet nation if the bloodshed continues, Trump said Putin's war 'will lead to the downfall of Russia.' 'I've always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him,' Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform at the time. Prisoner: American Stephen Hubbard, 72, was sentenced to almost seven years for fighting for Ukraine in the war Locked up: American soldier Gordon Black, 35, also remains in a Russian jail after he was arrested in May 2024 on dubious theft charges The Kremlin initially hit back as it suggested that Trump was suffering from the 'emotional overload' of brokering major peace deals across the globe. 'We are really grateful to the Americans and to President Trump personally for their assistance in organizing and launching this negotiation process,' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said when quizzed on Trump's remarks about Putin. 'Of course, at the same time, this is a very crucial moment, which is associated, of course, with the emotional overload of everyone absolutely and with emotional reactions.' Previous swap: Marc Fogel was returned to the U.S. in February after over three years in a Russian prison Lambasted: Trump recently called Putin 'crazy' on his Truth Social platform Just a day later, Lavrov has now praised Trump as a 'man who wants results' in a major breakthrough for the hostile nations. Trump previously faced a backlash for his remarks on Sunday about Putin, with critics saying he was naive for believing 'something has happened' to the Russian dictator. He said he believes Putin 'wants all of Ukraine, not just a piece of it,' after some observers said it appeared Trump wanted Ukraine to give up its recently lost territory in exchange for peace. Trump added at the time: 'This is a war that would never have started if I were President. This is Zelensky's, Putin's, and Biden's War, not Trump's. 'I am only helping to put out the big and ugly fires, that have been started through gross incompetence and hatred.' Despite his very blunt words for Putin, Trump also included a caveat that Ukraine is not completely absolved of fault for the devastating war. 'Likewise, President Zelensky is doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does,' he said, reigniting the tension between the two leaders. 'Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don't like it, and it better stop.' Trump's harsh words for Zelensky came after the two leaders had an extraordinary argument in the Oval office earlier this year in front of the world's press. That spat appeared to be smoothed over in recent weeks as the U.S. and Ukraine reached a landmark critical minerals deal.
Daily Mail
27-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Putin and Trump agree to prisoner exchange, Russia says
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump have agreed to a prisoner swap days after the US president branded his Russian counterpart 'crazy .' The prisoner swap was revealed Tuesday by Russia 's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov , who praised Trump as 'a man who wants results' as he spoke at an event in Turkey. Lavrov said the prisoner swap was agreed amid negotiations over the end of the war in Ukraine, which he sensationally accused European nations of attempting to 'sabotage.' As Lavrov announced the prisoner swap, sources told the Kyiv Post that Trump was 'seriously considering' lifting all restrictions on how Ukraine uses weapons on Russia. The US State Department did not immediately respond to request for details on which prisoners are set to be exchanged. Tuesday's breakthrough comes four days after Trump separately revealed that a 'major prisoners swap' had taken place between Russia and Ukraine, believed to involve up to 1,000 prisoners on each side. Trump posted on his Truth Social platform at the time that the massive exchange 'could lead to something big' , but did not offer details on what he wanted for brokering the deal. If the latest prisoner swap between the US and Russia goes ahead, it will be the first since American teacher Marc Fogel was returned to the US in February after over three years in a Russian prison. A number of Americans remain in Russian prisons that could form part of the deal, including 72-year-old Stephen Hubbard, who was sentenced last year to almost seven years in jail for fighting for Ukraine in the war. American soldier Gordon Black, 35, a US staff sergeant, also remains in a Russian jail after he was arrested in May 2024 on dubious theft charges . The developments come after a whirlwind weekend of diplomacy from Trump where he told reporters on Saturday that he was 'absolutely' considering imposing new sanctions on Russia. The next day, Trump launched into a blistering attack on Putin where he said the Russian leader has gone 'absolutely crazy.' Trump condemned the Russians for escalating their strikes on Ukraine while negotiations were ongoing, which he said was resulting in the 'needless killing of a lot of people.' In a chilling warning about the future of the former Soviet nation if the bloodshed continues, Trump said Putin's war 'will lead to the downfall of Russia.' 'I've always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him,' Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform at the time. The Kremlin initially hit back as it suggested that Trump was suffering from the 'emotional overload' of brokering major peace deals across the globe. 'We are really grateful to the Americans and to President Trump personally for their assistance in organizing and launching this negotiation process,' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said when asked about the Trump remarks about Putin. 'Of course, at the same time, this is a very crucial moment, which is associated, of course, with the emotional overload of everyone absolutely and with emotional reactions.' Just a day later, Lavrov has now praised Trump as a 'man who wants results' in a major breakthrough for the hostile nations. Trump previously faced backlash for his remarks on Sunday about Putin, with critics saying he was naive for believing 'something has happened' to the Russian dictator. He said he believes Putin 'wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it,' after some observers said it appeared Trump wanted Ukraine to give up its recently lost territory in exchange for peace. Trump added at the time: 'This is a War that would never have started if I were President. This is Zelenskyy's, Putin's, and Biden's War, not 'Trump's.' 'I am only helping to put out the big and ugly fires, that have been started through Gross Incompetence and Hatred.' Despite his very blunt words for Putin, Trump also included a caveat that Ukraine is not completely absolved of fault for the devastating war. 'Likewise, President Zelenskyy is doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does,' he said, reigniting the tension between the two leaders.
Daily Mail
27-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Russia bends to Trump after 'crazy' Putin comments in latest sign peace is on the horizon
Vladimir Putin announced that he and Donald Trump have agreed to a prisoner swap days after the US president branded his Russian counterpart 'crazy.' The prisoner swap was revealed Tuesday by Russia 's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, who praised Trump as 'a man who wants results' as he spoke at an event in Turkey. Lavrov said the prisoner swap was agreed amid negotiations over the end of the war in Ukraine, which he sensationally accused European nations of attempting to 'sabotage.' Officials did not provide details on which prisoners are set to be exchanged. It comes four days after Trump separately revealed that a 'major prisoners swap' had taken place between Russia and Ukraine, believed to involve up to 1,000 prisoners on each side.
