Russia, Ukraine make inmate exchange of under 25s
(MENAFN) Russia and Ukraine have carried out a new prisoner exchange involving soldiers under the age of 25, according to a statement from Russia’s Defense Ministry released on Monday. The ministry announced via Telegram that a group of Russian servicemen was returned from Ukrainian-controlled territory in exchange for an equal number of Ukrainian prisoners of war.
The Russian soldiers are currently receiving medical and psychological care in Belarus and will soon return home for further treatment and rehabilitation.
This swap follows agreements reached during recent talks in Istanbul, where both sides consented to exchange certain categories of detainees, including the wounded, the ill, and those under 25.
In a separate move, Moscow offered to return the remains of over 6,000 Ukrainian soldiers as a humanitarian gesture. However, during a scheduled handover of 1,212 bodies on Saturday, Ukrainian representatives reportedly failed to appear.
Ukrainian officials claimed the no-show was due to a lack of agreement on the date, accusing Russia of using the humanitarian initiative for propaganda purposes.
Russia criticized Kiev’s absence, with Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accusing Ukrainian leaders of abandoning their people and engaging in “genocide” against their own population. Russian lawmaker Dmitry Belik also speculated that Ukraine’s reluctance to accept the bodies might stem from a desire to avoid paying state compensation—roughly $367,000 per fallen soldier—to the victims’ families.
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