Moscow/Kyiv.- The Russian Ministry of Defense announced today that another exchange of 307 prisoners of war per side has taken place within the framework of the exchange agreement of one thousand prisoners agreed with Ukraine in Istanbul during the first direct negotiations with Kyiv in three years.
“Currently, Russian military personnel are in the territory of the Republic of Belarus, where they are receiving the necessary psychological and medical assistance,” Defense stated in a statement published on Telegram.
All Russian military personnel, the note adds, will be transferred to the Russian Federation to receive medical treatment and rehabilitation in hospitals of the Ministry of Defense.
“The large-scale (prisoner) exchange being carried out on the initiative of the Russian side will continue,” the statement concludes.
For his part, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, also reported the second step of the exchange by which 307 Ukrainian soldiers were released, after 390 were released on Friday.
“Another 307 Ukrainian defenders at home. Today is the second day of the 1,000 for 1,000 exchange we agreed on in Turkey. In just two days, 697 people have returned. We hope more will return tomorrow,” Zelensky announced on his Telegram account.
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The Ukrainian head of state specified that among those released are soldiers, members of the border protection service and the National Guard.
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“Thanks to everyone involved in the exchange process, who are working tirelessly. Our goal is the return of each and every one of ours from Russian captivity. We continue to interact with our partners to make this possible,” added Zelensky’s message, which was accompanied by images of those released, covered with Ukrainian flags and visible gestures of emotion.
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Also, the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Andriy Yermak, reported on the exchange in a message posted this Saturday on his X social media account, in which he recalled that “some of our people have been in captivity since 2022, we continue to work on the next return”.
The first stage of the prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine, agreed in Istanbul on the 16th, took place this Friday, when each of the parties handed over 270 military personnel and 120 civilians.
