Ukraine expects new prisoner exchange with Russia in coming days
Prisoner exchange (illustrative photo: flickr.com)
A new prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia could take place within the next few days, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov said during a meeting with students at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
Before making the announcement, one of the students asked the head of the Presidential Office whether he had any "red lines" when it came to prisoner exchanges.
"Tell me, please, does the value of human life exist for you or not?" Budanov asked.
After the student replied that human life is priceless, Budanov continued: "And if it is priceless, is there anything that can be disregarded?"
After hearing the answer, "No," he said: "Well, neither is there for me."
After that, Kyrylo Budanov briefly announced a new prisoner exchange.
"God willing, you'll see an exchange in the coming days," he said.
Prisoner exchanges between Ukraine and Russia
The latest prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia took place on June 5. It was the second stage of the large-scale 1,000-for-1,000 exchange.
A total of 185 military personnel and one civilian returned home, including members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard, and the State Border Guard Service. Some of them had been held in Russian captivity since 2022.
The first stage of the exchange took place on May 15 under agreements reached through US mediation. At that time, 205 Ukrainian defenders were returned.
Overall, according to the Office of the Ombudsman, Ukraine has brought home more than 9,000 of its citizens from Russian captivity, including hundreds of civilians who were illegally detained by Russia.
Ukraine's military intelligence also reported that Kyiv is working to bring back those who have been held captive since 2014, including in Crimea and Donbas.
