Ukraine and Russia agreed on Friday to exchange 1,000 prisoners each, with the prisoners to be swapped “in the near future,” Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov said.
The agreement came after 90 minutes of talks in Istanbul, only the second time in the more than three years since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbour that the two have spoken directly. The first talks came shortly after Russia started its full-scale war on February 24, 2022.
Observers had expected little from the negotiations after it was announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin would not attend.
Shortly before the Istanbul announcement, Ukraine said it had received the remains of 909 soldiers from Russia, while the Russian media reported that the Russian side received 34 bodies.
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