Russian officials are still waiting for a formal confirmation from Ukraine regarding the exchange of 6,000 soldiers who died in action. This situation is likely to lead to continuous accusations that Ukraine is delaying the swap.
According to Russian state media, Lieutenant General Alexander Zorin, part of the Russian negotiation team, mentioned that Russia has already sent the first group of 1,212 Ukrainian soldiers to the designated border exchange site. They are now awaiting confirmation from Ukraine, but there seems to be anticipation that the next steps will follow soon.
Both Russia and Ukraine condemned the other for a risky plan to trade the groups of fallen soldiers on Saturday.
Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to Putin and head of the Russian delegation, claimed Ukraine halted the exchange at the last moment. He noted in a telegram that a refrigerated truck carrying over 1,200 Ukrainian troops was already at the agreed site when the announcement of the delay was made.
Ukraine retaliated by accusing Russia of engaging in “dirty games” and distorting the truth.
Ukrainian officials responsible for these swaps clarified that no date had been set for receiving the bodies. They also claimed that Russia had submitted a list of prisoners for repatriation, which did not align with previous agreements reached on Monday.
Resolving the conflicting statements has proven to be challenging.
In other news, a Russian air strike in the Kharkiv region of eastern Ukraine resulted in one death and another serious injury. These attacks occurred after a series of strikes targeted the regional capital over the weekend. Local police reported that Saturday’s assaults raised the death toll to six, with more than 20 others injured.
Reports indicate that Russia launched a total of 49 drones, decoys, and three missiles overnight, with Ukrainian air forces stating that they managed to down 40 of the drones.
On the flip side, the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed to have shot down 61 Ukrainian drones, some in the vicinity of the capital, during the night.
In a separate incident, two people were hurt when a Ukrainian drone strike ignited a fire at a chemical facility in the Tula region.
Russian officials announced that two airports serving Moscow—Vnukovo and Domodedovo—temporarily halted flights due to a drone attack in Ukraine. By the end of the day, Domodedovo, along with Zukovsky Airport, had to suspend additional flights.
