Russia and Ukraine have initiated a prisoner exchange based on an agreement established during the peace talks in Turkey last week. Moscow has stated that the first phase targets the repatriation of younger soldiers.
During the discussions held in Istanbul on the previous Monday, both parties consented to release all injured troops as well as captured soldiers who are under 25 years of age—amounting to over 1,000 individuals from each side. Additionally, they committed to swapping the remains of 6,000 deceased soldiers.
According to Russia’s Defense Ministry, the first group of Russian service members under 25 was returned from areas controlled by the Ukrainian forces, as reported on Telegram on Monday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the exchange on social media platform X, stating that this process “will be conducted in several phases over the next few days.”
While neither country revealed exact numbers regarding the first exchange, Russia mentioned that it had repatriated “a similar amount” of Ukrainian soldiers. Russian chief negotiator Vladimir Medinsky announced on Saturday that Moscow had proposed a list of 640 Ukrainian prisoners of war for release.
The Russian Defense Ministry noted that the soldiers being returned are receiving mental health and medical support in Belarus before being sent home for additional care.
Zelensky characterized the exchange as “rather intricate, with numerous delicate aspects,” and indicated that discussions are ongoing “almost daily.” Earlier on Monday, the Kremlin expressed its readiness to fulfill the agreements but accused Ukraine of not meeting its responsibilities.
On Saturday, Russia’s Defense Ministry charged Kyiv with failing to establish a timeline for the prisoner swap. Conversely, Ukraine accused Moscow of engaging in “underhanded tactics” and not complying with the outlined terms.
Medinsky asserted that Ukraine did not appear to retrieve the bodies of its fallen soldiers. Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War responded by stating that no date had been finalized, and the names provided by Russia did not align with the stipulations of the agreement.
