Latest news with #POWs
Indian Express
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘Reminder to world that Russia chooses killing': Zelenskyy calls for increased pressure on Moscow for ceasefire
In response to a Russian missile strike on a nine-storey apartment building in Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday (June 19) called for increased pressure on Moscow for a ceasefire. The drone and missile strike on Kyiv early Tuesday (June 17) killed 28 people and wounded 142 others and was the deadliest the capital faced this year, said Kyiv Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko. Zelenskyy, along with Andrii Yermak, head of the presidential office, and Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko, visited the site of the destroyed apartment building in Kyiv's Solomianskyi district on Thursday morning and paid respects to the 23 people who lost their lives in the direct missile hit that brought down the structure. 'This attack is a reminder to the world that Russia rejects a ceasefire and chooses killing,' Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram, and thanked Ukraine's partners who he said are ready to pressure Russia to 'feel the real cost of the war.' The Tuesday strike was a part of Moscow's intensified attacks in its ongoing war against Ukraine. Russia launched over 440 drones and 32 missiles in what Zelenskyy claims was one of the biggest bombardments in the war, which began in February 2022. This comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected United States President Donald Trump's mediation offer for a 30-day immediate ceasefire. Russia, in recent weeks, has intensified its long-range attacks on Ukraine that have caused severe damage to urban residential areas. However, Putin has denied the accusations, stating that his military launched attacks 'against military industries, not residential quarters.' The Russian President also told the senior news leaders of international news agencies in St. Petersburg, Russia, that he was open to talks with Zelensky but reiterated that the Ukrainian leader's term had expired last year, and he had lost his legitimacy- an allegation that Kyiv and its allies have repeatedly rejected. 'We are ready for substantive talks on the principles of a settlement,' Putin said, noting that a previous round of talks in Istanbul had led to an exchange of prisoners and the bodies of fallen soldiers. A new round of prisoner swap took place on Thursday in Ukraine's Chernihiv region, where Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) were repatriated, who, according to Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War or KSHPPV, were suffering from severe health problems because of prolonged detention and injuries. Remarking on the exchange, Zelenskyy wrote in a post on Telegram, 'We are working to get our people back. Thank you to everyone who helps make these exchanges possible. Our goal is to free each and every one.' Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha on Thursday said that his country 'unconditionally accepted' the US ceasefire proposal, alleging that Russia's claims of its willingness to end the war were all 'manipulations'. 'It has been exactly 100 days since Ukraine unconditionally accepted the U.S. peace proposal to completely cease fire, put an end to the killing, and move forward with a genuine peace process … 100 days of Russia escalating terror against Ukraine rather than ending it,' Sybiha wrote in a post on X. 'Ukraine remains committed to peace. Unfortunately, Russia continues to choose war, disregarding US efforts to end the killing,' he added. (With inputs from AP)
Reuters
2 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Ukraine and Russia exchange POWs in latest swap
KYIV, June 19 (Reuters) - Ukraine and Russia exchanged prisoners of war on Thursday, officials from both countries said, the latest round of swaps under an agreement struck in Istanbul. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy posted images of the freed Ukrainian troops, smiling and draped in the national flag, most of whom had been held captive since the early months of Russia's February 2022 invasion, he said. The Ukrainian POWs exchanged on Thursday were sick or injured, according to Kyiv's coordinating council for POWs. The Russian POWs would also be sent for treatment and rehabilitation, Moscow's defence ministry said. Neither Ukraine nor Russia, whose talks on ending the war have yielded few results besides the exchange of prisoners or remains, provided an exact figure of how many POWs had been exchanged.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine, Russia conduct fourth prisoner exchange this week
Kyiv is continuing efforts to bring home its citizens held captive by Russia, marking the fourth prisoner exchange in a week, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on June 14. "Today, among those returning to Ukraine, many have been in captivity since 2022," Zelensky said. "These include soldiers from the Armed Forces, National Guard, State Border Guard Service, and the State Special Transport Service." The exchanges are part of the agreement reached during talks held in Istanbul earlier this month, where both sides agreed to phased prisoner swaps and repatriation of fallen soldiers. The latest group freed on June 14 mainly consists of severely wounded and seriously ill soldiers, many of whom were captured during the defense of Mariupol in 2022. Most of the released defenders are officers, with some younger than 25 years old. These Ukrainian defenders served on multiple fronts including Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, Kherson, Kharkiv, Sumy, and Kursk directions, the Coordination Headquarters for Prisoners of War stated. Ukraine has brought home another group of service members from Russian captivity on June 12. The prisoners of war (POWs) were also released as part of a prisoner exchange with Russia agreed upon during recent peace talks in Istanbul. The June 12 release follows a similar exchange on June 10, which also prioritized severely injured and ill captives. As during the previous swap, the number of personnel released was not immediately disclosed. The Istanbul deal was reached during a second round of direct talks between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations on June 2. While no political breakthrough was achieved, both sides agreed to a phased exchange of prisoners and the repatriation of fallen soldiers' bodies. As part of that agreement, Russia pledged to return the bodies of up to 6,000 Ukrainian service members. Ukraine brought back the bodies of 2,412 Ukrainian nationals, including fallen service members, on June 13 and June 11, as well as 1,200 on June 14. Despite ongoing exchanges, Ukraine continues to push for an "all-for-all" formula to bring every captured Ukrainian soldier home, a proposal Moscow has so far rejected. The Coordination Headquarters said preparations are underway for the next phase of prisoner releases in the coming weeks as Kyiv maintains its commitment to recovering all those held captive. The freed defenders will undergo medical examinations, receive physical and psychological rehabilitation, and be granted all entitled compensation for their time in captivity, according to the Coordination Headquarters. In a conversation with journalists, Zelensky expressed hope that the prisoner exchanges would be completed by June 20 or 21. We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine repatriates bodies of 1,200 citizens, soldiers under Istanbul deal with Russia
Ukraine has brought home the bodies of 1,200 Ukrainian soldiers and citizens as part of an agreement with Russia in Istanbul, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of the Prisoners of War (POWs) announced on June 13. The repatriation comes after Ukraine brought back the bodies of 1,212 fallen service members earlier this week, with Moscow voicing readiness to release the remains of some 6,000 Ukrainians total during recent peace talks in Istanbul. The headquarters coordinated the operation with the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the Ombudsman's Office, the military, the Interior Ministry, and other state and defense bodies. The International Committee of the Red Cross has also provided assistance. It is not immediately clear whether Ukraine released the bodies of Russian soldiers in return. During the previous exchange on June 11, Moscow claimed it had repatriated the bodies of 27 Russian service members. At the Istanbul meeting on June 2, Russian and Ukrainian delegations agreed on a new exchange of POWs but failed to reach a ceasefire agreement. The talks led to the most extensive prisoner swap in late May, involving 1,000 captives on each side. The exchanges continued this week, focusing on severely ill and wounded soldiers. Russia accused Ukraine on June 7 of failing to uphold a proposed prisoner exchange, a charge Kyiv denied. Russian media published footage showing refrigerated containers allegedly holding the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers, suggesting Kyiv had rejected their return. POW Coordination Headquarters deputy head Andrii Yusov told Ukrainian Pravda that the footage had been filmed inside Russia and not at a designated exchange site. Kyiv has repeatedly urged Moscow to adopt an "all-for-all" prisoner exchange formula. While over 5,000 Ukrainians have been returned from Russian captivity since March 2022, Russia continues to resist a comprehensive swap. Read also: Ukraine, Russia carry out another exchange of POWs under Istanbul deal We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Times
13-06-2025
- Health
- Times
After two years, a shriek of joy from the Ukrainian prisoner's wife
They came in ambulances, not coaches. The first to emerge were pushed in wheelchairs up the ramp to the hospital door; the next walked slowly up on their own, their sunken eyes passing over the crowds thronging below. These Ukrainian prisoners of war, the wounded, the sick and the disabled, were the latest to be released in a series of prisoner swaps with Russia, the only concrete measure agreed at negotiations overseen by the Americans that began in Istanbul last month. There were no joyful reunions. All those swapped for their Russian counterparts were immediately ushered into the hospital by waiting medical staff. President Zelensky welcomed them home as heroes but said 'all require medical treatment' being 'severely wounded and seriously ill'. A day earlier, Russia and Ukraine exchanged the bodies of 1,200 each of their fallen after an ugly war of words over who was holding up proceedings. After a prisoner exchange fell through last week, Russia drove refrigerated lorries to the border and flung open the doors to show piled up body bags containing dead Ukrainian soldiers — a move denounced by Zelensky as 'a dirty political and propaganda game'. The exchanges, which restarted this week with the youngest prisoners of war from both sides, have become magnets of desperate hope and grief for the families of the missing. Outside the hospital mothers, fathers, sisters, wives, girlfriends and children jostled to hold up photographs of their loved ones, calling out names, battalions and where the missing were last seen. Suddenly there was a scream from the crowd. 'Denys, Denys!' a young woman shouted, holding her toddler daughter. It was the first she had learnt that her husband, missing in action for two years, was alive. Medical staff caught her as she collapsed and was put into a wheelchair. She was the only family member allowed inside as the soldiers underwent examination and debriefing before their transfer to rehabilitation. The walking wounded, who arrived later by bus, were less willing to be rushed inside. Shaven-headed, they stood on the ramp outside the hospital door, blinking in the sunlight as their eyes raked over the photographs of their missing comrades held aloft by the crowds. One sadly shook his head as he looked at face after face. Another held out his hands and studied each photograph closely. 'Yes,' he said. 'This one I know.' At the sight of a returned prisoner at a fifth floor window, the crowd surged, shouting out for information. From the window, he shouted the phone number of his former cellmate's mother which he had memorised to let her know he was still alive. 'He is from Azov,' he shouted. 'He was in my cell.' Ukraine nor to the International Committee of the Red Cross, which is tasked under the Geneva Convention with facilitating communications between PoWs and their families. • 'They want to destroy everything' — the families fleeing Putin's brutal offensive 'These men are not just in a very bad condition, they have been held incommunicado for up to three years,' said Petro Yatsenko, spokesman for Ukraine's Co-ordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War. 'They do not know anything that has happened in the war. They don't know if Ukraine is completely broken.' EPA On their medical treatment in captivity, he cited one prisoner released earlier this week, who told a Russian military doctor he was experiencing excruciating pain in his foot. 'The doctor said, 'Show me where' and he showed him and the doctor beat him right in that place,' he said. 'The doctor did that.'
