Russian and Ukrainian officials held a second round of direct talks in Istanbul on Monday and agreed to move forward on another prisoner swap, but did not appear to make any progress toward a ceasefire or lasting peace deal as the two sides remain very far apart.

Russia and Ukraine agreed to return the bodies of more than 12,000 soldiers, and up to 1,200 POWs from each side could also be exchanged. Each side released 1,000 POWs following the first round of talks in mid-May.

During the talks on Monday, which lasted about an hour, Russia presented its terms for a peace deal, which include Ukrainian troops withdrawing from territory in the four oblasts Moscow annexed in 2022.

The post Russia, Ukraine Agree On Prisoner Swap But No Progress On Ceasefire appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.