After Moscow and Kyiv exchange accusations of delaying the planned exchange of POWs, the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence directorate (HUR) said that a planned exchange of captured soldiers would start “next week,.”
“The start of repatriation activities based on the results of the negotiations in Istanbul is scheduled for next week,” HUR chief Kyrylo Budanov said on social media.
At talks in Istanbul last Monday, June 2, Kyiv and Moscow agreed to another exchange of POWs and the repatriation of the remains of those killed in action.
As reported by AFP earlier on Sunday, the planned exchange (the only real outcome of the talks in Istanbul) was thrown into question over the weekend as both sides accused each other of delaying and thwarting the swap. In Istanbul last week, Kyiv and Moscow agreed to release all wounded soldiers and those aged under 25 who had been captured; more than 1,000 people on each side.
In his evening address on Sunday, President Volodymyr Zelensky accused the Kremlin of playing a “dirty, political” game over the swap after the two sides accused each other of delays.
“The Russian side, as usual, is trying to play a dirty, political, information game,” Zelensky said adding that if Russia fails to comply with the deal to release more than 1,000 captured soldiers, it “will cast great doubt” on diplomatic efforts a peace.
The last prisoner swap, a 1,000 for 1,000 exchange occurred last month without incident.
Last week, the Ukrainian Air Force said it had captured a group of Russian soldiers in Russia’s eastern Kursk region, claiming the troops surrendered after they were subject to inhumane treatment by their own commanders.
They said the Russian soldiers surrendered “because abuse in units is worse than captivity.”
Then, later in the week, the HUR released intercepted communications in which the commander of a Russian army unit is heard issuing a direct order that wounded Ukrainian soldiers should be executed rather than take them prisoner.
The commander says that the four Ukrainian soldiers in their captivity were wounded.
“There are three ‘khokhols’ [a Russian slur for Ukrainians] crawling around, they’re ‘three-hundreds’ [military slang for wounded], moving west.”
Then comes the key phrase – a direct order to kill:
“In your situation, don’t take them prisoner – eliminate them.”
“We’ve already taken one f**ing prisoner but eliminate the others so you don’t have to drag them into shelter and expose yourselves.”