Ukraine and Russia agree to exchange new prisoners next week.

Ukraine announced yesterday that the prisoner exchange with Russia, which was supposed to take place last weekend, will actually happen next week, following accusations from both sides of obstructing the process. Ukrainian military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov stated that the anticipated prisoner repatriation operations will commence based on the results of the Istanbul negotiations next week, confirming that things are progressing as expected and accusing Russia of "unfair media play." The second round of direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine took place on June 2 in Istanbul, where the parties exchanged documents outlining conflict settlement visions. Russian delegation head Vladimir Medinsky clarified that Moscow presented Ukraine with a memorandum of proposals in two parts, and both sides agreed that Russia would hand over 6,000 Ukrainian soldiers' bodies. Russia and Ukraine also agreed to exchange sick prisoners and young prisoners under 25 years old in a "all for all" format, with a minimum of 1,000 prisoners from each side. The Russian side also proposed a 2-3 day ceasefire in specific areas of the frontlines, along with providing a list of 339 children who lost contact with their families. Earlier reports indicated that Russia began transferring the bodies of 1,212 Ukrainian soldiers to the exchange site as a first batch. The operation comes amid ongoing conflict between the two countries, with international parties hoping the exchange will alleviate the suffering of the prisoners and their families.