Moscow, Kyiv conduct second major prisoner exchange following Istanbul agreement

Russia and Ukraine have carried out a second large-scale prisoner exchange, each side returning 307 military personnel, as part of an ongoing process agreed during recent negotiations in Istanbul.

The Russian Ministry of Defence confirmed the swap, stating that the Russian soldiers have already arrived in Belarus, where they are receiving medical and psychological care.

They will soon be transferred to the Russian Federation for further treatment and rehabilitation in military medical facilities.

The reciprocal release was part of the framework laid out during the May 16 meeting in Istanbul —  the first direct dialogue between Moscow and Kyiv since shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The Istanbul talks yielded only one concrete outcome: an agreement by both parties to release a total of 1,000 prisoners each.

On May 23, the first exchange under this agreement took place, with Russia and Ukraine trading 270 military personnel and 120 civilians.

According to Russian officials, the exchange process is set to continue, marking a rare moment of coordination between the two countries amid the ongoing conflict.

By Tamilla Hasanova