Moscow: Russia and Ukraine have announced the completion of a new prisoner swap as part of agreements secured during their recent peace talks in Istanbul. The exchange marked another step in the ongoing efforts to address humanitarian concerns amid the prolonged conflict between the two nations.

According to Anadolu Agency, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shared the news on X, highlighting the return of members from Ukraine's Armed Forces, National Guard, and Border Guard Service. This swap is part of a broader initiative focusing on repatriating severely wounded and seriously ill personnel. Zelenskyy expressed gratitude to all parties involved in facilitating these exchanges and emphasized Kyiv's continued commitment to repatriating Ukrainians held by Russia.

Ukrainian ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets elaborated on the significance of the exchange, noting that some of the Ukrainian prisoners had been in captivity since the early days of the conflict, which is now in its fourth year. He mentioned that the ages of the returned prisoners range from 22 to 59 years.

The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed the exchange via a statement on Telegram, indicating that Russian servicemen had been returned in exchange for Ukrainian servicemen. The ministry detailed that the Russian soldiers are currently in Belarus, receiving psychological and medical care before their transfer to Russia for further treatment and rehabilitation. Additionally, the ministry expressed Russia's willingness to conduct daily exchanges as agreed in Istanbul, although it claimed that Ukraine is not prepared to proceed at the same pace.

Despite the mutual confirmations of the swap, both Russian and Ukrainian authorities have withheld specific details regarding the number of prisoners exchanged. Furthermore, Kyiv has yet to respond to the latest statement from the Russian ministry.

The recent prisoner swap follows the second round of peace talks held in Istanbul on June 2, which built upon initial discussions on May 16. During these talks, both sides agreed to prioritize the exchange of young and severely wounded prisoners and the repatriation of the bodies of 6,000 fallen soldiers from each side. The first round of prisoner exchanges under these agreements was confirmed by both Russia and Ukraine last Monday.