Ukraine and Russia Agree on ‘All for All’ Exchange of Heavily Wounded and Seriously Ill Prisoners

During the second round of the negotiations in Türkiye on June 2, Ukraine and Russia agreed on an “all for all” exchange for specific categories of prisoners of war, including heavily wounded and seriously ill soldiers.

This was reported by Suspilne, citing the final press conference of the Ukrainian delegation.

The parties also agreed on an exchange of all young soldiers aged 18 to 25. Additionally, an agreement was reached to exchange the bodies of fallen soldiers on a “6,000 for 6,000” basis.

Additionally, Ukraine received a “memorandum” from the Russian delegation outlining the conditions for ending the war. The negotiation team has a week to review it. After that, the parties will coordinate the next steps.

The Ukrainian delegation also handed over a list of several hundred children who were illegally relocated by Russia from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, and whom Ukraine demands to be returned.

“This issue is a fundamental priority for us. If Russia is truly committed to the peace process, the return of at least half of the children on this list would be a positive signal,” said Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umierov.

It is also reported that the Russian side had refused to agree to an unconditional ceasefire. Instead, according to Forbes, citing the Russian delegation, a ceasefire was proposed for 2-3 days in certain areas of the front line.

According to them, “this is necessary in order to retrieve the bodies of fallen soldiers and give them proper burials.”

The Russian delegation also confirmed the agreement on the exchange of certain categories of military personnel in the “all for all” form. According to their statements, the process is expected to involve at least 1,000 individuals.

In addition, the Russians confirmed receipt of the list containing 339 Ukrainian children. However, they claimed that there were “no abducted children” among them, asserting that all had been supposedly “rescued from combat zones.”

As previously reported, Ukraine and Russia agreed on a “1,000-for-1,000” prisoner exchange after the first round of the negotiations between the two delegations in Türkiye on May 16.

The exchange took place in three stages — on May 23, 24, and 25. As a result, Ukraine brought back 880 service members and 120 civilians.