Kyiv hands over 15 Russian citizens to Belarus

Ukraine has transferred 15 Russian citizens to Belarus. The group comprises 12 women and three men.

The arrangement was coordinated between Russian Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova and her Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Lubinets, reflecting a bilateral agreement on the return of these individuals, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

During a recent meeting between National Security and Defence Council Secretary Rustem Umerov and Russian representatives, the parties agreed to prepare for a large-scale exchange before the New Year. They also agreed to work on and finalize the lists of detainees.

On November 15, Umerov announced that Ukraine and Russia would resume prisoner exchanges. Currently, it is expected that Kyiv will manage to free 1,200 Ukrainians from Russian captivity.

According to him, after consultations in Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates regarding the resumption of exchanges, the parties agreed to activate the Istanbul agreements.

The last prisoner exchange took place in early October, when 185 Ukrainian defenders returned home. Among them were National Guard members who defended the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant at the start of Russia's full-scale invasion.

The youngest released defender was 26 years old, and the oldest was 59.

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War also reported that it is currently working in two directions: exchanges based on the Istanbul agreements and so-called "numbered exchanges."

By Vafa Guliyeva