MOSCOW, June 7. /TASS/. Ukraine has unexpectedly moved to indefinitely postpone the acceptance of bodies and the exchange of prisoners of war, Russian Presidential Aide Vladimir Medinsky, who heads Moscow’s delegation to talks with Kiev, said. According to Lieutenant General Alexander Zorin, spokesman for the Russian negotiating team, Ukraine is currently refraining from setting a date.
TASS has gathered the key information on the issue.
Prisoner exchange parameters
- Medinsky pointed out that on June 6, in strict accordance with the Istanbul agreements, Russia unilaterally began a humanitarian operation to transfer the bodies of over 6,000 Ukrainian service members to Ukraine.
- Russia also launched the process of exchanging wounded and seriously ill prisoners of war and prisoners of war under the age of 25.
Convoys at designated point
- Zorin specified that a convoy carrying the first batch of 1,212 bodies had arrived at the exchange point.
- Another three trains, each carrying 1,200 bodies, and a motor convoy, also carrying 1,200 bodies, will be dispatched soon. The total number of bodies will exceed 6,000.
- Russia has handed the first list of 640 wounded, seriously ill and young prisoners over to Ukraine in order to begin the exchange process.
- The Russian Defense Ministry’s contact group is currently on the border with Ukraine.
Ukraine’s actions
- Medinsky noted that "Ukraine, however, unexpectedly moved to indefinitely postpone both the acceptance of bodies and the prisoner swap."
- Ukraine’s negotiating team for some reason failed to arrive at the exchange point, providing various reasons, including rather strange ones, the Russian presidential aide added.
- According to Zorin, Ukraine is refraining from setting a date when these people will return home and the same number of Russian prisoners of war will be handed over to Russia.
Russia’s call
- Moscow urges Kiev to strictly adhere to the schedule and immediately proceed with the exchange, Medinsky emphasized.
- According to the Russian presidential aide, international broadcasters, news agencies and correspondents can come and see for themselves that this is where things stand.
- Zorin confirmed that Russia was completely ready to implement the Istanbul agreements, handing the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers over to Kiev and carrying out a prisoner exchange based on the agreed formula.