Ukraine, Kiev: only prisoner exchange agreed in Istanbul

Brussels, 2 June (LaPresse) – In the second round of negotiations between delegations from Ukraine and Russia, which ended a short while ago in Istanbul, an agreement has been reached on a new prisoner exchange. This was announced to journalists by the head of the Ukrainian delegation, Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, according to Ukrainian media reports Ukrinform and Unian. In the talks, "the first point is the ceasefire. The second is the release of our people: prisoners and kidnapped children. The third is a summit between the leaders. We have only agreed on the exchange. Further details will be provided later," Umerov said. The minister explained that during the exchange process, attention will be paid to specific categories of citizens. The focus was on the need to exchange seriously ill patients and the remains of the deceased, but the exchange of young soldiers was also discussed during the meeting. The talks follow the first round on 16 May, during which the two sides agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners each.