President Zelensky announced the commencement of a multi-stage prisoner exchange, emphasizing the delicate nature of the negotiations, as both sides are reportedly returning a similar number of prisoners without disclosing exact figures. Amid the ongoing conflict, both countries have recently heightened military actions against each other.
Ongoing Russia-Ukraine Prisoner Exchange Marks New Diplomatic Effort
Ongoing Russia-Ukraine Prisoner Exchange Marks New Diplomatic Effort
A prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine is taking place, with both countries engaged in complex negotiations to facilitate the return of service members.
A complex prisoner exchange is currently in progress between Russia and Ukraine, as confirmed by officials from both Moscow and Kyiv. President Volodymyr Zelensky shared images via Telegram showcasing soldiers joyfully returning to their homeland. He indicated that the exchange would occur "in several stages" over the coming days, revealing that the focus would be on returning the wounded, severely injured, and soldiers who are under the age of 25.
Zelensky described the exchange process as intricate, filled with "many sensitive details," stressing that talks are ongoing nearly every day. Meanwhile, Russian officials stated that a "similar number" of Ukrainian prisoners had also been returned, though neither country has disclosed specific numbers regarding the total exchanged.
The Russian Ministry of Defence mentioned that the first group of Russian servicemen, all under the age of 25, were brought back from areas controlled by Ukraine, following an agreement facilitated by discussions between the two nations last week in Turkey. According to Moscow, the returned Russian soldiers will receive psychological and medical support in Belarus.
On the Ukrainian side, families of the released prisoners and those still unaccounted for gathered in the Chernihiv region, near the Belarus border, to welcome the returning soldiers while seeking updates on their loved ones. Accusations had recently surfaced between Ukraine and Russia regarding disruptions to the planned repatriation of deceased soldiers’ bodies.
The last major prisoner exchange took place in late May, when both nations returned 390 individuals, marking the largest swap since the onset of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
As these diplomatic efforts unfold, military actions between the two countries escalate. Russia conducted an extensive drone strike, reportedly launching a record 479 drones at various targets in Ukraine, including the western region of Rivne, a location previously insulated from such attacks. Russian defense officials claimed to have targeted a military base in Dubno as retaliation for purported Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian airfields earlier last week.
There were reports of damage across multiple Ukrainian regions due to these recent assaults, although no casualties were reported. Concurrently, Kyiv announced it had struck a Russian airbase located in the Nizhny Novgorod region, about 400 miles from the Ukrainian border, asserting it had inflicted damage to enemy aircraft. Ukraine also targeted an electronics factory accused of producing components for drones and aerial bombs, illustrating the ongoing intensity of the conflict.
