Written by: Ferenc Horváth • The latest developments: 26/05/2023 – 06:58
Kiev and Moscow exchanged prisoners of war; 106 Ukrainian soldiers captured at Bahmut were able to return home – along with their fallen American and two deceased Turkish comrades.
Kiev and Moscow exchanged prisoners of war. 106 Ukrainian soldiers, mostly captured at Bahmut, including 8 officers, can return home, said Andriy Jermak, chief adviser to the Ukrainian president.
The city in eastern Ukraine, which was completely destroyed in the long siege, was occupied by Russian units, although according to Ukrainian information, their troops are still holding themselves in a narrow area.
The Ukrainian president said; “Many of the 106 soldiers were not known, they were considered missing. But we found them and brought them home. Eight officers, 98 soldiers and sergeants. … Everyone who is on the front line should remember this: the more Russian prisoners we take, the more of our people we will bring back”.
The released Ukrainian prisoners of war also carried a coffin covered with an American flag.
The head of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, claimed that the bodies of American and Turkish citizens who fell in Bahmut were handed over. Prigozhin also published a video of him standing next to two wooden coffins. One with an American flag, the other with a Turkish flag. According to Prigozhin, the American fell during the fight, and the two Turkish citizens died under the ruins of a collapsed building in Bahmut.
Meanwhile, President Alexander Lukashenko announced that the transfer of some Russian tactical nuclear weapons from Russia to the territory of Belarus had begun.
According to the Russian president, this does not violate the conventions on the prevention of the proliferation of nuclear weapons.
According to Washington and NATO, “this is a dangerous and irresponsible step.”
