Moscow, July 4 (IANS) Russia and Ukraine on Friday conducted another round of prisoner exchange, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

In accordance with the Russian-Ukrainian agreements reached on June 2 in Istanbul, another group of Russian servicemen has been returned from the territory controlled by Ukraine, the ministry said in a statement.

It added that a group of Ukrainian Armed Forces prisoners of conflict was handed over in exchange. The number of released prisoners from both sides was not provided.

Russian servicemen are in Belarus and will be taken to Russia for treatment and rehabilitation in the military’s medical institutions, Xinhua news agency reported.

During their latest round of talks in Turkey’s Istanbul, Russia and Ukraine agreed on an “all-for-all” exchange involving seriously ill and wounded prisoners, as well as soldiers under the age of 25.

Earlier on June 26, Ukraine and Russia carried out another round of their prisoner exchange, according to Ukraine’s Coordinating Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

The swap involved soldiers under the age of 25, as well as ill and wounded servicemen from the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the National Guard and the State Border Guard Service, the agency said in a statement.

Most of those released had been in captivity for more than three years, with some having taken part in the battles for Mariupol, the statement said.

All returning soldiers will undergo medical examination, receive psychological support and physical rehabilitation, it said.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasised in his post on Telegram the importance of bringing all Ukrainians home from Russian captivity.

Earlier on June 19, captured servicemen had been returned home in a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine, the Russian Defence Ministry had said.

“In accordance with the Russian-Ukrainian agreements reached in Istanbul on June 2, a group of Russian servicemen was released from Ukrainian captivity in a Kyiv-controlled area. In exchange, a group of Ukrainian war prisoners was handed over to Kyiv,” the ministry had said.

–IANS

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