New prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine. «Following the talks – says the Russian Ministry of Defense – 195 Russian soldiers were returned from captivity in Ukraine».
At the same time, Volodymyr Zelensky's announcement: «Our people are home, 207 kids, but we have to bring them all back. We're working on it".
The number provided by the Ukrainian president was, however, denied in a note from Moscow: «In exchange for the 195 Russian prisoners, exactly 195 Kiev prisoners of war were handed over».
The prisoner exchange comes a week after the crash of a Russian plane in the Belgorod region that Moscow said was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war for an exchange agreed with Kiev. Russian forces accused the Ukrainians of shooting down the aircraft, an Il-76 military cargo plane, killing the prisoners on board.
Kiev did not outright deny Moscow's version, but cast doubt on whether Ukrainian soldiers were actually on board the flight, and called on Moscow to publish photos of their bodies or provide other evidence to support its claims. The incident had thrown into doubt the future of prisoner exchanges between the two sides.
According to Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets, today's exchange is the 50th since Russia invaded the country in February 2022.
(Unioneonline/L)
