Initially, there were 15 names on the list for the exchange of Ukrainian commanders from Azovstal, among whom there were Azov military, but it was not possible to agree on it.
Turkish Presidentʼs spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told CNN Türk about this.
"Our president [Recep Erdogan] was very warm to this issue [exchange], we discussed this issue with our colleagues for about 3.5 months. Could not match all 15 names. That list did not reach Lviv [meeting of the presidents], in the end it was reduced to five names. These five people will remain safe with us until the end of the war," Kalin said.
- On the night of September 22, Ukraine exchanged prisoners with Russia. Ukraine returned 215 defenders of Mariupol, including the commanders of the "Azov" regiment, and Putinʼs crony Viktor Medvedchuk and 55 Russian soldiers were returned to Russia.
- On the afternoon of September 21, it became known that the Russian authorities handed over to Saudi Arabia 10 captured foreigners who fought for Ukraine and were sentenced to death by the occupiers.
- Heads of the Ukrainian special services later said that the exchange was delayed for almost 8 hours, but in the end it took place simultaneously in four countries — Ukraine (on the border with the Russian Federation in the Chernihiv region), Poland (one of the stages), Turkey and Saudi Arabia.