Russia and Ukraine have shared a list of 31 civilians detained by each party in a potential exchange, as stated by Russia’s Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova on Monday.
Moskalkova asserted that Ukraine is still holding 31 individuals from Russia’s Kursk region, which was under brief Ukrainian control during a cross-border operation last August.
As reported by the state news agency TASS, Moskalkova mentioned that she provided the authorities in Kyiv with a list of civilians from Kursk and, in return, received a list of 31 Ukrainian civilians for a “reciprocal repatriation without any conditions.”
She was quoted saying, “We have coordinated with [Ukrainian human rights ombudsman] Dmytro Lubinets to hold discussions this week to set a specific date [for the exchange].”
There was no immediate response from Ukrainian officials regarding the talks for a potential exchange.
Moskalkova has accused Ukrainian forces of forcibly relocating over 1,000 residents from Kursk before Russian troops reestablished control over the area earlier this year.
Families of missing individuals in Kursk had previously estimated that as many as 3,000 people were stranded in the occupied regions. Authorities initially indicated that 500 were unaccounted for but later revised that figure to over 1,100.
Moskalkova’s statement followed shortly after Russia and Ukraine conducted a simultaneous exchange of 84 prisoners. Both nations have engaged in a series of large-scale swaps following direct peace negotiations held in Istanbul in May and June.
