Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Russia has begun to delay the prisoner exchange process amid negotiations to end the war. According to him, Moscow is seeking broader agreements, which is why it is blocking the approval of the lists.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this on December 11, according to Suspilne.
“The Russians have begun to slow down these processes because they want general agreements. In my opinion, this is exactly what is happening. If we have the formation of all these processes, then we will return again to decisions on exchange,” the president explained.
According to Zelenskyy, NSDC Secretary Rustem Umerov had a meeting on prisoner exchanges, and the parties allegedly agreed on a “fairly large exchange” before the New Year.
“And that the lists need to be discussed, but now it is the Russian side that is slowing things down,” the president said.
Recall that on November 15, Umerov reported that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to activate the Istanbul agreements on the exchange of prisoners of war — 1,200 prisoners were involved.