Ukraine and Russia, mediated by Turkey, conducted a prisoner exchange, within which the defenders of Azovstal were fired. The commanders of the regiment defending Mariupol will remain in Turkey for a while.
The details of the exchange were announced by Ukraine's Ambassador to Turkey Vasily Bodnar. He stated that Viktor Medvedchuk was exchanged for 200 Ukrainians. Another 15 fighters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including 5 defenders of Azovstal and 10 foreigners, were exchanged for 55 Russians.
Ukrainian commanders will be guarded
The ambassador said that Kirill Budanov, head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, and Denis Monastyrsky, Minister of the Interior, worked directly in Ankara. The process was coordinated at the coordinating headquarters in the Office of the President, headed by Andriy Yermak.
Vasily Bodnar said that Turkey's role was that it was in Ankara that the physical exchange took place. Also, according to him, the teams of Denis Prokopenko's regiment will remain in Turkey for a long time under the protection and tutelage of the Turkish state and under the personal patronage of President Recep Erdogan.
The Ukrainian ambassador explained that commanders should remain in a special institution until the end of the war. At the same time, Bodnar noted the issue of the security of our soldiers, who will be reliably guarded.
As the ambassador said, they will be under strict guard and must undergo rehabilitation. The diplomat said that the commanders released from captivity are “quite exhausted, exhausted by all these tortures and inhuman treatment by the aggressor country.”
Erdogan called the released prisoners “guests of Turkey”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan commented on the exchange of prisoners between Ukraine and Russia, Anadolu reports. The Turkish leader called the released prisoners of war “guests of Turkey”.
According to him, the list of persons to be exchanged included the name of the person whose extradition Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted. Probably, we are talking about Viktor Medvedchuk.
200 people are under our control. President Putin insisted on one thing in particular. We have already sent him to Russia,” the Turkish leader said.
Ukrainian soldiers will live in a private house
During a briefing held on September 22, the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense Kirill Budanov said that the dismissed commanders of the garrison The defenders of Mariupol will live in a private house in Turkey.
He assured that this is a fairly comfortable place to stay. They will live there for a while. Other details regarding their stay will be told by the commanders themselves a little later.
As you know, on September 21, an exchange of prisoners of war took place between Ukraine and Russia. The commanders of the Azovstal defenders Denis Prokopenko, Sergei Volynsky and Svyatoslav Palamar were released from captivity.
