Each country releasing 35 prisoners in biggest exchange since start of Crimea conflict A long-awaited prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine got under way on Saturday morning, Russian state media said. Details of the exchange have been kept under wraps, but it is believed that both countries will release about 35 prisoners.
Russia is expected to hand over 24 Ukrainian sailors that it took captive during a naval clash off the coast of Crimea last year.
Rossiya 24, a Russian state television channel, confirmed that the exchange had begun. It broadcast images of two buses with tinted windows leaving Moscow’s Lefortovo prison. The buses later arrived at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport, while a plane with the Ukrainian flag was spotted on the runway. Relatives of the Ukrainian prisoners gathered at Kyiv’s Boryspil airport. Continue reading... |