New prisoner exchange: Zelenskyy reveals details and timeline

The Ukrainian side is ready to exchange 500 servicemen, whom Russia plans to hand over on Saturday and Sunday. However, Ukraine has yet to receive the lists of individuals from the Russian side, which complicates the process.

This was reported by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

He shared updates on the progress of prisoner exchange negotiations following the second meeting in Istanbul. According to him, the Ukrainian side is ready for the exchange, but the lack of lists from Russia remains a key obstacle to carrying out the procedure successfully.

"A just cause. I am grateful to them for their service," Zelenskyy noted. He said that during today’s consultations, the agreement on the exchange was confirmed: Russia plans to return 500 of our servicemen on Saturday and Sunday as part of the overall number agreed upon by both parties.

At the same time, the President emphasized that receiving the lists of individuals to be exchanged is a crucial step. "We have not yet received the lists. I believe this is important. This time, unlike the previous meeting in Istanbul, we reached an agreement. I told the minister even before the meeting, and the Russians gave their word that they would send the lists in advance. But once again, we haven't received the lists — apparently, there are some reasons again," Zelenskyy stated.

The President also noted that Ukraine will insist on receiving these lists before the exchange begins, especially given Russia’s readiness to carry out the first two exchanges over the weekend.

Additionally, Zelenskyy touched on the issue of exchanging the bodies of fallen soldiers: "We have the relevant documents that clearly state Russia has identified 15–20% of all the bodies in their possession. This is according to documents they have. We won’t say where we got these documents from, but our analysis confirms the same."

The President stressed the importance of proper identification of the deceased: "That’s why we agreed that all sides should prepare thoroughly, to ensure proper identification. Because we do not joke around when it comes to our soldiers."

Following the prisoner exchange, the repatriation of fallen soldiers’ bodies is likely to be prepared.