The Kremlin claims that as fighting rages on in the wake of a third round of peace talks that once more failed to lead to a ceasefire in the fourth year of conflict, Russian forces are pushing to establish “buffer zones” along the Ukrainian border.
Following a brief meeting between delegations in Istanbul on Wednesday that lasted only 40 minutes, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov made the remarks during a briefing on Thursday. He added that Russia had no intention of waging a full-scale war against Ukraine.
Further prisoner swaps were discussed by Turkish city negotiators, but they remained distant over a proposed face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Following the discussions, Vladimir Medinsky, the head of the Russian delegation, stated that about 250 people had been exchanged for prisoners along the Ukrainian-Belarus border, with about 250 of them having been taken back to each side at a press conference in Istanbul.
More than 1, 000 Ukrainians came back.
More than 1, 000 Ukrainian prisoners were returned under the agreement, Zelenskyy claimed in a post on social media that the exchange occurred on Wednesday, the ninth stage of an agreement reached by the parties in Istanbul.
This brings the joy of embracing their loved ones once more, Zelenskyy said, noting that many of the prisoners have been imprisoned for more than three years.
He argued that continuing exchanges and our people’s return to their countries are crucial.
“We will continue to do everything in our power to rescue each and every person who has been imprisoned.”
attacks on drones and missiles
Russia and Ukraine continued their airstrikes on one another following the brief meeting in Istanbul, with Russian drones and missiles launching Ukrainian-style strikes overnight and reports of casualties coming out of Russian airspace.
Three people were killed in the Kharkiv region as a result of Russia’s overnight launch of 103 attack drones and four missiles, Zelenskyy claimed in a social media post on Thursday. He continued, adding that a 9-year-old child among the others was hurt in Cherkasy.
He pointed out that the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul had reiterated its “proposal for an immediate and full ceasefire” just one day earlier.
Russian drones “reacted” to residential construction, the Pryvoz market in Odesa, apartment blocks in Cherkasy, energy infrastructure in the Kharkiv region, and a university gym in Zaporizhzhia, he claimed.
He continued, “We will make every effort to make diplomacy work.” Russia must end this war, according to the statement.
The Russian side received a second recommendation for an immediate and complete ceasefire yesterday at the meeting in Istanbul. Russian drones attacked residential structures, the Pryvoz market in Odesa, apartment blocks in Cherkasy, energy infrastructure in Kharkiv, and other targets. twitter.com/Ax9Q0xEM6z
Source: Aljazeera
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