sputnik--2019-12-26--16 Killed by Typhoon Phanfone in Philippines - Reports

16 people were found dead on Thursday after the powerful typhoon Phanfone swept across the central part of the country, the AFP news agency reported, citing local disaster agency officials.  The calamity has brought strong winds and heavy rainfalls that have destroyed over 100 buildings and disrupted numerous power lines.  According to disaster officials, Phanfone's winds were blowing at a speed of 120 km per hour (75 miles per hour) when it hit the eastern Samar province.  On 3 December, more than 225,000 locals were evacuated as another powerful typhoon, Kammuri, ravaged Luzon and Mindoro islands.


theguardianuk--2019-08-12--Typhoon Lekima 44 killed in eastern China after landslide and floods

Typhoon Lekima: 44 killed in eastern China after landslide and floods

A powerful typhoon has left at least 44 people dead in China, after a landslide backed up a river that broke through debris and inundated homes, state media reported.  More than a million people were evacuated from their homes after Typhoon Lekima hit the eastern province of Zhejiang on Saturday with maximum winds of 116mph (187km/h), the official Xinhua news agency reported.  The landslide occurred in Yongjia county on the outskirts of Wenzhou, a major port city.  Heavy rain caused a natural dam to collapse and the resulting landslide blocked a river which rose to a level of 10m (30ft) within 10 minutes, trapping 120 villagers, Xinhua said.  State media said on Monday that the death toll had risen by 12 to 44.  The additional victims included seven from Zhejiang province and five from Shandong. Sixteen people were still missing, according to data from provincial emergency bureaus and state media.  Thousands of flights were cancelled in eastern China, according to the country’s aviation regulator, with most flights into and out of Shanghai’s two main airports called off on Saturday afternoon, their websites showed.  China’s weather bureau on Saturday issued an orange alert – its second highest – after posting a red alert on Friday, when the storm forced flight cancellations in Taiwan and shut markets and businesses on the island.  The storm was moving northward at 9mph (15km/h) and was gradually weakening, Xinhua reported, citing the weather bureau. High winds and heavy rains battered the financial hub of Shanghai on Saturday afternoon, and Shanghai Disneyland was shut for the day.  Nearly 200 hundred trains through the city of Jinan in Shandong province had been suspended until Monday, Xinhua reported.  More than 250,000 residents in Shanghai and 800,000 in Zhejiang province had been evacuated due to the typhoon, and 2.72m households in Zhejiang had power blackouts as strong wind and rain downed electricity transmission lines, state media reported.  About 200 houses in six cities in Zhejiang had collapsed, and 66,300ha (163,830 acres) of farmland had been destroyed, CCTV said.  The storm reached Jiangsu and veered over the Yellow Sea before continuing north and making landfall again in Shandong province.  Coastal businesses in Zhejiang were shut and the emergency management ministy warned of potential risk of fire, explosions and toxic gas leaks at chemical parks and oil refineries.


theguardianuk--2019-09-09--Typhoon Faxai batters Tokyo causing evacuations blackouts and transport chaos

Typhoon Faxai batters Tokyo, causing evacuations, blackouts and transport chaos

A powerful typhoon with record-breaking winds and heavy rain has battered the Tokyo region, sparking evacuation warnings for tens of thousands and causing widespread blackouts and transport disruption.  Government spokesman Yoshihide Suga told reporters that he had received a report of one death and damage caused by toppling trees and flying objects. He said some 900,000 power failures were also reported.  Typhoon Faxai was one of the most powerful typhoons to hit the Japanese capital for years, packing winds of up to 216km/h (134mph).  Faxai made landfall in Chiba prefecture, just east of Tokyo, before dawn on Monday, after barrelling through Tokyo Bay.  About 5,000 people in Chiba and nearby Kanagawa prefecture were ordered to evacuate, public broadcaster NHK said on its Twitter feed.  Authorities issued non-compulsory evacuation warnings to more than 390,000 people, as forecasters cautioned the rain and wind could reach “record” proportions.  There were no immediate reports of deaths and only several minor injuries by early Monday, but some 864,000 houses lost power, NHK said, including the entire city of Kamogawa, east of Tokyo.  “I’ve never seen a situation like this, where the entire city lost power,” a city official told NHK.  At least 10 houses were damaged in Shizuoka with windows shattered and cars flipped onto their sides, according to local media.  Winds were occasionally strong enough to shake buildings in the city of Ichikawa. Streets normally busy with commuters walking or cycling to the train station were deserted.  Metal signs were torn from the sides of buildings, trucks overturned, the roof of a gas station torn off and glass display cases destroyed, scattering sidewalks with broken glass. Twenty-four-hour fast-food restaurants in central Tokyo closed, protecting their windows with plywood.  “Please be on full alert against gusts and high waves and be vigilant about landslides, floods and swollen rivers,” the Japan meteorological agency said in a statement.  Television footage showed a huge roof collapsing at a petrol station in Tateyama, south of Tokyo, with pumps crushed underneath.  Faxai was expected to cause havoc with the Monday morning commute in Tokyo, as train operators were forced to suspend major lines until at least 8 am.  “We need to inspect tracks and check if there is any damage as the typhoon is expected to pass through the region overnight,” a train company spokesman told AFP.  East Japan Railway (JR East) said its bullet trains on five lines were running, but at reduced speed, while Central Japan railway suspended the Tokaido bullet train linking Tokyo and Odawara city because of strong winds, NHK reported.  The typhoon already caused some travel disruption on its approach. About 100 bullet trains connecting Tokyo with central and western Japanese cities were scrapped on Sunday, along with ferry services in Tokyo bay.  JR East was expected to resume most services on lines in Tokyo by mid-morning after completing track inspections.  Airlines cancelled more than 100 flights scheduled on Monday while some coastal highways were closed west of the capital in Kanagawa due to the storm, according to local media.  There were no immediate reports of serious injuries or significant damage but eight surfers were rescued amid high waves off Shizuoka in central Japan after they were swept out to sea, local officials said.  “Two helicopters were dispatched while special rescuers rushed out to sea,” a fire department spokesman told AFP. “We sent two of them to hospital but no one was in danger of dying.”  Some department stores and amusement parks, including Tokyo Disneyland, closed earlier than scheduled due to the approaching storm.  Faxai, travelling north at a speed of 25kph, was expected to hit northeastern Japan before fizzling out over the Pacific by around noon on Monday.  The typhoon made landfall just as teams were due to arrive in Tokyo for the Rugby World Cup, which kicks off on 20 September.  The French team managed to sneak in just ahead of the typhoon and reach their training camp near Mount Fuji.  However, the Australian squad found their preparations disrupted as the typhoon delayed their scheduled arrival.  The England squad were expected to arrive in Tokyo on Monday morning before heading to the south-western island of Kyushu on Tuesday for a week-long training camp ahead of their opening match against Tonga on 22 September.  Japan is accustomed to severe tropical storms and typhoons during late summer and autumn. Typhoon Krosa lashed western Japan in mid-August, bringing strong winds and torrential rain that claimed one life.  North Korea was also surveying the damage from a powerful typhoon, with state media saying five people had been killed and three injured after Typhoon Lingling battered the Korean peninsula from Saturday afternoon through to late Sunday.  Lingling also damaged crops, raising concerns about food shortages in the impoverished country.  “Crops fell down, (were) inundated or buried in 46,200 hectares of farmland,” the KCNA news agency said. “Active work to eradicate the aftermath is now under way in the afflicted areas.”  KCNA said the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, convened an emergency meeting at which he “berated senior officials for being “helpless against the typhoon, unaware of its seriousness and seized with easygoing sentiment”.  Lingling killed three people in South Korea and injured 27, the government said. Around 160,000 households suffered power cuts and hundreds of flights were grounded.


theguardianuk--2019-10-13--Typhoon Hagibis: recovery and rescue efforts in full swing

At least 25 people have died and 15 others are missing after one of the most powerful typhoons in decades struck wide areas of Japan’s main island on Saturday night.  Media reports said thousands of troops, firefighters and other emergency workers had been dispatched to rescue people trapped by floodwater in the worst-hit areas, as utilities raced to restore power to hundreds of thousands of homes.  Typhoon Hagibis, which has been described by meteorologists as the strongest storm to hit Japan for more than six decades, caused widespread damage across low-lying land in central and eastern parts of the country, with rivers bursting their banks after hours of torrential rain and howling winds.  Hagibis, which means “speed” in the Philippine language Tagalog, forced the cancellation of hundreds of flights and affected shinkansen bullet train services, the Japanese state broadcaster NHK said, reporting that more than 100 people had been injured.  Hagibis also caused disruption to major international sports events scheduled to take place over the three-day weekend, including the Rugby World Cup, forcing the cancellation of several pool matches.  Millions of residents of Tokyo awoke to sunshine and clear skies, and many train lines resumed services, but authorities warned that rivers in eastern Japan could still overflow and inflict more damage.  The prime minister, Shinzo Abe, held an emergency meeting and offered his support to all those affected by the disaster – the second destructive storm to hit Japan in the space of a month.  “I extend my condolences to all those who lost their lives and offer my sympathies to all those impacted,” Abe said. “With respect to blackouts, water outage and suspension of transportation services, we will do our utmost to bring about a swift recovery. We ask the public to stay vigilant in case of landslides and other hazards.”  The government said 27,000 members of the self-defence forces and other emergency workers had been sent to Nagano prefecture – one of the most badly affected regions – and other affected areas to help with the rescue effort.  TV footage showed military helicopters airlifting stranded people from homes that had been flooded by river water. Some families, including those with small children, had been forced to seek safety on their roofs.  One clip showed a helicopter hovering over a flooded area in Nagano prefecture, where an embankment of the Chikuma River had broken and unleashed sheets of water across residential areas. The helicopter plucked those stranded on the second floor of a home submerged in muddy waters.  Aerial footage showed tractors at work trying to control the flooding. Meanwhile, rows of bullet trains were left sitting in a pool of water at a depot.  The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, which was wrecked by a deadly tsunami in March 2011, reported irregular readings from sensors monitoring water at the facility.  Emi Iwasa, a spokeswoman for Tokyo Electric Power, said the storm had triggered 11 leak alerts at the plant, eight of which were confirmed as having been caused by rainwater. The utility has not confirmed if any radioactive water leaked into sea.  Away from the plant, a stretch of Fukushima was flooded, with only the rooftops of residential homes visible. Parts of nearby Miyagi prefecture were also under water. The Tama river system, which runs by Tokyo, overflowed its banks.  Authorities at one point issued evacuation advisories and orders for more than 6 million people as the storm unleashed heavy rain and winds.  “The major typhoon has caused immense damage far and wide in eastern Japan,” Yoshihide Suga, the government’s top spokesman, told reporters.  “The water came up higher than my head in the house,” said Hajime Tokuda, a resident of Kawasaki, near Tokyo.  In Higashimatsuyama city, north-west of Tokyo, rice and flower farmers were counting their losses,water submerging warehouses full of freshly harvested crops.  “We never had a flood like this before in this neighbourhood,” said one farmer, who declined to give his name. “We cannot even go into the flower warehouse due to the water. I don’t know where to start cleaning up this mess.”  Authorities warned of a continuing threat from mudslides. Among the reported deaths were those whose homes had been buried. Other fatalities included people who were swept away by raging rivers.  Suga said damage to housing was extensive, but promised help was on its way. By Sunday afternoon, more than 160,000 homes were without electricity, the public broadcaster NHK said, adding that about 1,000 people in Chiba, east of Tokyo, were experiencing water shortages.  The widespread loss of electricity has again raised questions about Japan’s power infrastructure, weeks after Typhoon Faxai destroyed or damaged 30,000 houses in Chiba and caused extensive power cuts.  The improvements in safety infrastructure that accompanied Japan’s postwar modernisation were apparent, however. The authorities had repeatedly warned that Hagibis’s strength was on a par with a typhoon that hit the Tokyo region 61 years ago, but that storm, Typhoon Ida, left more than 1,200 people dead and half a million houses flooded.  The Rugby World Cup match between Namibia and Canada, scheduled for Sunday in Kamaishi on the country’s north-east coast, was cancelled, but the decisive fixture between Japan and Scotland in Yokohama, south of Tokyo, will go ahead the same evening.  Qualifying for the Japanese Formula One race in Suzuka was pushed back from Saturday to Sunday.


thehuffingtonpost--2019-12-27--Typhoon Phanfone Claims Dozens Of Lives In Philippines

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A strong typhoon that barreled through the central Philippines left at least 28 dead and 12 missing, and forced thousands to flee their homes, devastating Christmas celebrations in the predominantly Roman Catholic country.  Typhoon Phanfone stranded many people in sea and airports at the peak of holiday travel, set off landslides, flooded low-lying villages, destroyed houses, downed trees and electrical poles and knocked out power in entire provinces. One disaster response officer described the battered coastal town of Batad in Iloilo province as a “ghost town” on Christmas Day.  “You can’t see anybody because there was a total blackout, you can’t hear anything. The town looked like a ghost town,” Cindy Ferrer of the regional Office of the Civil Defense said by phone.  The storm weakened as it blew into the South China Sea with sustained winds of 74 miles per hour and gusts of 93 mph, after lashing island after island with fierce winds and pounding rain on Christmas Day, the weather agency said.  Most of the deaths reported by police and local officials were due to drowning, falling trees and accidental electrocution.  A father, his three children and another relative were among those missing in hard-hit Iloilo province after a swollen river inundated their shanty.  Rescuers carry a body, believed to be one of several fishermen who went missing at the height of Typhoon Phanfone.  The typhoon slammed into Eastern Samar province on Christmas Eve and then plowed across the archipelago’s central region on Christmas, slamming into seven coastal towns and island provinces without losing power.  Provincial officials, army troops, police and volunteers spent Christmas away from home to tend to thousands of displaced residents in town gymnasiums and schools turned into emergency shelters. Many more people spent Christmas Eve, traditionally a time for family reunions, in bus terminals.  An outrigger boat destroyed by the storm in Ormoc City, central Philippines. The typhoon left over a dozen dead and many homeless.  More than 25,000 people were stranded in sea ports across the central region and outlying provinces after the coast guard prohibited ferries and cargo ships from venturing into dangerously choppy waters. Dozens of international and domestic flights to and from the region were canceled, including to popular beach and surfing resorts.  About 20 typhoons and storms batter the Philippines each year. The Southeast Asian nation is also located in the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” where earthquakes and volcanic eruptions often occur, making the country of more than 100 million people one of the world’s most disaster prone.  Phanfone, a Laotian word for animal, traveled along a path similar to that of Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most ferocious storms on record, which left more than 7,300 people dead and missing, flattened entire villages, swept ships inland and displaced more than 5 million people in the central Philippines in 2013.


thesun--2019-12-27--Philippines typhoon – Death toll rises to 28 as Christmas disaster leaves 12 missing

A TYPHOON ripped through central Philippines over the Christmas period killing 28 and leaving 12 missing.  More than 58,000 people were evacuated from their homes as Typhoon Phanfone struck the Philippines on Tuesday, bringing with it heavy rain and flooding.  Among those killed were a 13-year-old boy who was electrocuted and a man who was killed by a falling tree branch. Another victim was killed in a car crash during the horrific storm.  The Philippine ABS-CBN network also reported a family was killed when they were swept away by a flash flood as they tried to escape.  Photographs across central provinces of Capiz, Iloilo and Leyte show widespread damage, with homes completely destroyed by the 93mph wind gusts and winds of up to 75mph.  People were forced to wade through the flood waters, while others were pictured taking refuge in their homes surrounded by the rising tides.  More than 58,000 people had been evacuated from their homes before the storm hit on Tuesday.  It then made its way across the Philippines on Wednesday night - moving wast over the South China sea.  Others were left stranded at airports as they tried to get home for Christmas, with buildings around airports including in Kalibo smashed by the winds and water.  Roads have also been left blocked by the flood waters, along with fallen trees and debris.  The typhoon came after nearby regions were devastated by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013.  More than 6,000 people had been killed when the typhoon with winds of more than 193mph swept across the region in November of that year.  The winds made it the most powerful storm to ever hit land.


thetorontostar--2019-12-26--Christmas typhoon leaves 20 dead in Philippines

MANILA, Philippines - A strong typhoon that barrelled through the central Philippines left at least 20 people dead and forced thousands to flee their homes, devastating Christmas celebrations in the predominantly Catholic country.  Typhoon Phanfone stranded many people in sea and airports at the peak of holiday travel, set off landslides, engulfed low-lying villages with floods, destroyed houses, downed trees and electrical posts and knocked out power in entire provinces. One disaster response officer described the battered coastal town of Batad in Iloilo province as a “ghost town” on Christmas Day.  “You can’t see anybody because there was a total blackout, you can’t hear anything. The town looked like a ghost town,” Cindy Ferrer of the regional Office of the Civil Defence said by phone.  The storm weakened slightly on Thursday as it blew into the South China Sea with sustained winds of 120 kilometres (74 miles) per hour and gusts of 150 kph (93 mph) after lashing island after island with fierce winds and pounding rain on Christmas Day, the weather agency said.  Most of the 20 deaths reported by officials were due to drowning, falling trees and accidental electrocution.  A father, his three children and another relative were among those missing in hard-hit Iloilo province after a swollen river inundated their shanty, officials said.  The typhoon slammed into Eastern Samar province on Christmas Eve and then barrelled across the archipelago’s central region on Christmas, slamming into seven coastal towns and island provinces without losing power, government forecasters said.  Provincial officials, army troops, police and volunteers spent Christmas away from home to tend to thousands of displaced residents in town gymnasiums and schools turned into emergency shelters.  More than 25,000 people were stranded in sea ports across the central region and outlying provinces after the coast guard prohibited ferries and cargo ships from venturing into dangerously choppy waters. Dozens of domestic flights to and from the region were cancelled.  About 20 typhoons and storms batter the Philippines each year. The Southeast Asian nation is also located in the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” where earthquakes and volcanic eruptions often occur, making the country of more than 100 million people one of the world’s most disaster prone.  Get more of the Star in your inbox Never miss the latest news from the Star. Sign up for our newsletters to get today's top stories, your favourite columnists and lots more in your inbox Sign Up Now


upi--2019-10-12--At least 3 dead, over 80 injured after deadly Typhoon Hagibis made landfall in Japan

The day before Hagibis made landfall in Japan, residents of Tokyo were scraping for the last supermarkets had to sell across the city as they prepared for what the Japan Times reported Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike had called "a typhoon of unprecedented scale."  Hagibis rapidly strengthened in the West Pacific to become the third super typhoon of the season last week. The storm went from a tropical depression with sustained winds of 30 mph to a super typhoon producing winds of 150 mph only 48 hours later.  At a peak strength of 160 mph, the typhoon tied with Wutip from February as the most powerful tropical cyclone in the West Pacific Basin this year.  Although the Japan Meteorological Agency had downgraded the status of the storm to a "strong" typhoon before landfall in Japan, the agency had warned in a news conference during that Friday morning the storm could be as severe as the Kanogawa Typhoon, which had killed more than 1,200 people in 1958 and is one of the deadliest typhoons on record, the New York Times reported.  By 5 a.m. local time Saturday, the JMA had downgraded the scale of Hagibis from a "large and strong" typhoon to a "large" typhoon with maximum sustained winds of about 70 mph and gusts of about 98 mph.  The deadly Typhoon Hagibis made landfall in Japan just before 7 p.m. local time on Saturday, moving ashore near Izu Peninsula in Shizuoka Prefecture and packing winds of the equivalent strength as a Category 2 hurricane in the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific Ocean basins.  As of 7 a.m. local time, at least three people have died and nine others are missing during in the chaos that Hagibis has brought. The NHK reported four people are missing after two landslides destroyed homes in the Gunma and Fukushima prefectures and four others had been swept away by floodwaters. A man is also missing in the Shizuoka Prefecture.  The Tochigi City Fire Department told Kyodo News Sunday morning that a woman who had been previously reported as missing had been found dead in a waterway around 4:30 a.m. local time on Sunday.  Twelve hours before landfall, evacuation advisories were set in place for 86,846 households and 191,878 people in Odawara, a city in Japan's Kanagawa Prefecture at 7 a.m. Saturday morning local time, according to local news station NHK. The evacuation advisory was at a warning level 4 out of 5, calling for immediate evacuation.  As the number of evacuations began to mount toward at least 4 million people, the NHK said, so did the number of power outages across the regions. Bands of wind and rain preceding Hagibis knocked out the power for more than 270,000 households. By just after midnight local time, over 431,900 homes were without power after landfall. Some locations may be without power for an extended period during and following the storm.  Wind gusts measured up to 100 mph at Kozushima, one of the islands south of Tokyo an hour after landfall at 8 p.m. local time, according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Adam Douty.  "The strongest wind will be near the coast where some damage is possible. This is an area that was just hit by Faxai early in September that brought significant damage," Douty said.  By 5 a.m. local time on Friday, areas around Shizuoka, Japan, were already flooding.  "One of the big issues with Hagibis will be the heavy rain coming in a short period of time along and to the north of the storm's path," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dave Houk said.  The NHK reported that a record-level of nearly 1,000 millimeters of rain, or close to 39 inches, from the storm had fallen over Hakone Town in the Kanagawa Prefecture over a timespan of 48 hours.  The Japan Meteorology Agency issued level 5 heavy rain emergencies - the highest level of warning in the JMA's five-level warning system - across at least seven prefectures early Sunday morning.  "Reports of rainfall totals between 6 to 12 inches, or 152 to 304 millimeters, have been common across Kansai, Chubu and Kanto through Saturday night, local time, but locally higher amounts have been reported in higher elevations of the mountains," AccuWeather Meteorologist Maura Kelly said. "Chichibu reported 20.11 inches, or 511 millimeters, of rainfall through Saturday night.  At least seven rivers are in their flooding stages in central and eastern Japan, according to NHK news.  Early Sunday morning, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government decided to apply the Disaster Relief Law to the 25 wards and municipalities of Tokyo due to the damage caused by Hagibis, the news source said.  This means that government and city aid will pay for the installation of evacuation shetlers and emergency repairs for damaged homes.  "Hagibis will move offshore by Sunday morning and conditions will quickly improve throughout the day across northern areas in mainland Japan and Hokkaido," Kelly said. "While high pressure building over northern Japan will bring dry conditions on Sunday night, a weak storm system will begin to develop near southern Japan. This system can bring occasional showers to coastal locations of Kansai, Chubu and Kanto, areas hardest hit by Hagibis."  In the storm's approach, most events scheduled for Saturday had been rescheduled for Sunday, including Saturday's qualifying race for the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka International Racing Course.  With the storm moving away from Tokyo by 6 a.m. Sunday morning, transportation operations such as the Haneda Airport are beginning to resume once again.  "Another cold front is expected to move over Japan and bring occasional showers to the area during the beginning of next week," Kelly said. "By the middle of the week, dry conditions look to return to areas recovering from Hagibis. Dry weather may last through the end of the week before the next chance of rain arrives in southern Japan."


21stcenturywire--2019-04-27--Israel to Release Two Syrian Prisoners in Good Will Gesture Following Return of Israeli Soldiers

Israel to Release Two Syrian Prisoners in ‘Good Will Gesture’ Following Return of Israeli Soldier’s Body

This is a new twist to a story which surfaced earlier this month in a deal between Syria and Israel, seemingly brokered by Russia.    According to reports, Israel will release two Syrians currently being held in Israeli prisons. They are  Zidan Tweil, arrested in 2008 for drug smuggling, and a supposed ‘Fatah operative,’ and  Hamis Ahmad, arrested in 2005 for “attempting to infiltrate an Israeli military base and harm soldiers.”  This follows on the heals of a pre-election agreement to repatriate the long lost remains of the deceased IDF soldier – a move which was said to have helped Netanyahu in his embattled election bid earlier this month. At the time, some skeptics were accusing Putin of handing Netanyahu ‘an election gift‘ – perhaps without knowing the full story which would later unfold.  As it turns out, the reciprocal move by Israel was part of a quid pro quo agreement, seemingly brokered by Russia. This was confirmed by Russia’s envoy to Syria, Alexander Lavrentyev, who said Friday that Israel had agreed to release the two Syrian citizens in exchange for of Baumel’s remains.  Israel will release two Syrian prisoners as a “good will gesture” after the recovery of the body of missing Israel soldier, Zachary Baumel, an Israeli official announced on April 27, according to the Times of Israel.  The official said that the decision to release the Syrian prisoners was taken few days ago without the cabinet approval. However, the decision bypassed the Israeli laws with the consent of Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit.  Israel recovered the remains of Zachary Baumel, a U.S.-born Israeli soldier missing since a 1982 tank battle against the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), earlier this month. Russian and Syrian forces played a key role in the recovery of the remains, according to President Vladimir Putin.  The Israeli official’s announcement confirmed a recent statement by Russian President’s Special Envoy to Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, in which he said that Israel will soon release Syrian prisoners.  The identities of the two Syrian prisoners who will be released from Israeli jails is yet to be revealed. However, Israeli media claim that they are Syrian Druze from the occupied al-Golan Heights, who were jailed because of their cooperation with the Damascus government.


pravadareport--2019-09-09--Moscow trapped by exchanging prisoners with Kiev

Having exchanged prisoners with Kiev, Moscow fell into a trap as Russia has in fact admitted to being a part of the Ukrainian conflict. The actions of the Kremlin have internal consequences too.  Why Washington is happy with the exchange  US National Security Advisor John Bolton wrote on Twitter Monday that Washington considers the weekend exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine very important.  Apparently, Washington's optimism is due to the fact that the US could drive Moscow into a trap should such exchanges continue. Russia would thus show her involvement in the Ukrainian conflict.  Indeed, having exchanged participants of the "Russian spring" (they hold Ukrainian citizenship) for Ukrainian terrorists (only 12 of the 35 prisoners from the Russian list were Russians), Moscow assumes responsibility for their "crimes." For example, Russia becomes responsible for the actions of Alexander Sattarov, a Berkut policeman who was detained in December 2017 in Dnepropetrovsk on charges of separatism.  Such a development changes the nature of the Ukrainian conflict dramatically. If it were a civil war, as Moscow insists, then Donetsk and Lugansk would have to exchange prisoners of war with Kiev within the scope of the Minsk Accordsб which they signed, while Russia and Ukraine would have to do it by exchanging Ukrainians for Russians. Moscow's "direct participation" in the conflict will now be justified, for example, by the protection of its agents. This may tighten sanctions against Russia even more.  Moscow's actions have internal consequences. The move to exchange prisoners with Ukraine could be made to target Putin's supporters across Russia. The majority of those who support the Russian president, do not understand why the Kremlin should care too much for those prisoners that hold dual Russian-Ukrainian citizenship. Such a move, they believe, causes moral damage to those, who denounce Ukrainian citizenship and hope for independence and reunification with Russia.  The fact that the names of the heroes of the "Russian spring" remain hidden from public attention also seems confusing to many. The faces of those people are blurred when shown on federal TV channels. Moscow stands up for those men, so people deserve to know what they were arrested for and what they did for the protection of the Russian world.  In good conscience, given the president's message about the protection of Russians in Ukraine, the Russian authorities should have arranged a welcoming ceremony for those people to thank them for their struggle against the fascist regime of Petro Poroshenko. It is shameful to fear new sanctions while proclaiming sovereignty and protection of the "Russian world" through the mouth of the president.  Ukraine is split in terms of its attitude to Russia, and this is not going to change ever. There are historical roots to this phenomenon. During the times of the Russian Empire, the Ukrainians were called Little Russians, who betrayed Orthodoxy and lived in remote regions of the country. The "Ukrainization" under Soviet rule and the next 25 years of independence resulted in the growth of  Ukrainian nationalism, which became a system-forming factor.  The Ukrainians did not vote for Poroshenko for economic, rather than political reasons. Russia should not be playing the game of fraternity with Ukraine. At the same time, Ukraine is home to many ethnic Russians, whom Russia should protect along with their historical territories.  The construction of the Crimean Bridge is a positive story. The Crimea had been handed over to Ukraine largely because it was necessary to solve the water supply problem there during the times of the USSR. Today, the Crimea lives under the conditions of the water blockade. The Crimea will be doomed to stagnation, unless this problem is resolved. One should therefore address the issue of Novorossiya as an independent state.


eveningstandard--2019-09-07--Ukraine and Russia exchange prisoners in bid to improve relations

A major prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine has seen 35 people detained in each country freed and then flown to the other, a move that could advance relations between the two nations and help end five years of fighting in Ukraine's east.  The exchange involved some of the highest-profile prisoners caught up in a bitter stand-off between Ukraine and Russia.  Among those Russia returned was Ukrainian film director Oleg Sentsov, whose conviction for preparing terrorist attacks was strongly denounced abroad, and 24 Ukrainian sailors taken with a ship the Russian navy seized last year.  The prisoners released by Ukraine included Volodymyr Tsemakh, who commanded a separatist rebel air defence unit in the area where a Malaysian airliner was shot down in 2014, killing all 298 people aboard.  Dozens of Ukrainian politicians had urged President Volodymyr Zelenskiy against trading Tsemakh, who Dutch investigators examining what happened to the plane want to question.  Mr Zelenskiy greeted the freed prisoners as they stepped down from the plane that had brought them from Moscow to Kiev's Boryspil airport. Relatives waiting on the tarmac surged forward to hug their loved ones.  Most of the ex-detainees appeared to be in good physical condition, although one struggled down the steps on crutches and another was held by the arms as he slowly navigated the steps.  Vyacheslav Zinchenko, 30, one of the released sailors, said: "Hell has ended; everyone is alive and that is the main thing."  He and 23 others were seized after Russian ships fired on two Ukrainian vessels on November 25 in the Kerch Strait, located between the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov next to Russia-annexed Crimea.  Nikolai Karpyuk, who was imprisoned in 2016 after he was convicted of killing Russians in Chechnya in the 1990s, said: "Russia was not able to break me even though they tried hard to do this."  At Moscow's Vnukovo airport, the released prisoners remained on the plane for about 15 minutes for unknown reasons. When they came off, many toting baggage, a bus drove them to a medical facility for examination.  Another Ukrainian on the plane from Moscow was Kirill Vyshinsky, head of Russian state news agency RIA-Novosti's Ukraine branch. He had been jailed since 2018 on treason charges.  The exchange comes amid renewed hope that a solution can be found to the fighting in Ukraine's east that has killed 13,000 people since 2014.  Prospects appeared to rise last month with the announcement of a planned summit of the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany - the four countries with representatives in the long-dormant "Normandy format", a group seeking to end the conflict.  Konstantin Kosachev, head of the foreign relations committee in the Russian parliament's upper house, said the exchange represented a move "in the direction of crossing from confrontation to dialogue, and one can only thank those thanks to whose strength this became possible".


fortruss--2019-09-02--The exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine is postponed

The exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine is postponed  KIEV – Ukraine and Russia do not intend to exchange prisoners this September 2, the lawyer of Russian citizens held in Ukraine, Valentin Ribin, said.  “Today there will be not [an exchange], no one will go anywhere until there is a Zelenski decree on the pardon,” he said.  The spokeswoman for the Security Service of Ukraine, Elena Guitliánskaya, said on August 30 that nothing prevents the exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine and all the corresponding procedures “move forward as planned.”  Kiev and Moscow are finalizing the date and details of the prisoner swap.  Last week, the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenski, said he expects “in the next few days” results of the work that has been done for two months to exchange prisoners with Russia.  The Kremlin, meanwhile, confirmed last week that Russia and Ukraine maintain contacts in this regard, but at the same time denied that a date had been set for the future exchange of prisoners.  In 2014, Ukraine launched an operation against militias in the east of its territory – Donbass – where the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk were proclaimed, in response to the violent change of government in Kiev in February of the same year.  The Minsk agreements laid the groundwork for a political resolution of the conflict, but until recently they failed to stop the hostilities.  Among the measures drawn up in February 2015 in order to comply with the agreement is “the release of all hostages and the exchange of prisoners of war.”  Russia maintains certain contacts with Ukraine on the exchange of prisoners between the two countries, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov days ago.  “I can say that we maintain certain contacts but I cannot add anything else,” Peskov told reporters when asked about the issue.  Peskov added that the Kremlin greets the release of the head of the RIA Novosti Ukraina portal, Kiril Vishinski, by the Kiev Court of Appeals.  “I want to remind you of a statement by [Russian President, Vladimir] Putin, who said that it can be judged only by concrete facts, by concrete words, and we must wait for it; there are concrete steps, such as the release of Vishinski, what we greet,” he said.  He added that Moscow closely follows the readjustments in the Ukrainian government and called on it to comply with the Minsk Agreements to normalize relations with Russia.


france24--2019-12-29--Ukraine swaps 200 prisoners with pro-Russian separatists

Ukrainian prisoners are escorted by pro-Russian separatists near the Mayorsk crossing point in the Donetsk region on December 29, 2019.  Ukraine and Russia-backed separatists in the country's war-torn east exchanged 200 prisoners on Sunday, swapping detained fighters for civilians and servicemen held captive in some cases for years in the breakaway regions.  “The mutual release of the detainees has ended,” the presidential office in Kiev said in a statement on Facebook.  The Ukrainian presidency said Kiev received 76 captives, while separatist officials said the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics took in a total of 124 people.  Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron hailed the swap as "positive".    The agreement was concluded by Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Paris in December.  The swap took place at a check point near the industrial town of Horlivka in the Donetsk region.  Kiev's forces have been battling separatists in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine since 2014 in a conflict that has claimed more than 13,000 lives. Sporadic fighting continues despite a ceasefire agreement.  There have been several prisoner exchanges between Kiev and the rebels. In the last swap, conducted in December 2017, Ukraine handed over about 300 captives to pro-Russian separatists and took back around 70.  Relations between Ukraine and Russia collapsed following Moscow's annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014, and its subsequent supporut for separatists in the eastern Donbass region.  President Zelenskiy won a landslide election victory in April promising to end the conflict.  Widely criticized domestically for his plan to grant special status to Donbass to help end the five-year conflict, Zelenskiy's latest actions have given rise to cautious optimism.  In September, after a carefully negotiated rapprochement, Russia and Ukraine swapped dozens of prisoners. The move brought Western praise and hopes that relations between Moscow and Kiev could thaw.  The released Ukrainians included sailors detained by Russia during a clash in waters off Crimea last year, and filmmaker Oleg Sentsov, jailed in Russia.  The meeting of Ukrainian, Russian, German and French leaders earlier this month in Paris renewed optimism for a resolution to the conflict, and confirmed the relevance of an early peace agreement signed in Belarusian capital Minsk in 2015.  Relations between the two countries are also unlikely to be aggravated by a dispute in the gas sector, where Kiev and Moscow are arguing about a new transit contract to replace the current agreement which expires at the end of the year.  Ukraine has repeatedly accused Russia of using natural gas supplies to put pressure on the neighbouring state, but last week the parties managed to agree on the main points of a new deal.


pravadareport--2019-09-05--Putin Russia and Ukraine will hold large-scale exchange of prisoners

Putin: Russia and Ukraine will hold large-scale exchange of prisoners

The talks between Russia and Ukraine about the mutual exchange of captivated individuals are entering the final stage, said Russian President Vladimir Putin.  "Based on considerations of humanity, we are approaching the finalization of the negotiations that we have been conducting, without limitation, with official authorities. I think this will become known in the near future," Putin said, speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum and answering a question about the possible timing for the exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine.  According to the president, it will be a large-scale exchange that will play a positive role in bilateral relations.  "I think that from a historical perspective this will inevitably happen. In my opinion, the relations will normalise completely, because we are two parts of the same people, as I have said many times before," Putin said, emphasizing that the development of the situation in the near future largely depends on the Ukrainian leadership.  Earlier, Ukrainian politician Viktor Medvedchuk, who takes part in negotiations between Russia and Ukraine on the issue of exchange of prisoners, said that he would like to meet with Russian President Putin on Thursday. Medvedchuk arrived in Vladivostok for the purpose.  "I think that Mr. Medvedchuk is going to torment me on this issue. I know that he is specifically concerned about several people held in places of imprisonment in the Russian Federation, and it was rather difficult for us to make decisions regarding those specific people," Putin said.


rferl--2019-08-23--Ukraine Russia Reportedly Preparing To Exchange Dozens Of Prisoners

Ukraine, Russia Reportedly Preparing To Exchange Dozens Of Prisoners

Kyiv and Moscow are reportedly preparing a prisoner exchange that would see each side swapping 33 detainees, possibly including Ukrainian sailors captured by Russian forces late last year.  RBK media group, citing unnamed sources in Russia late on August 22, said the swap of 33 Ukrainian citizens held in Russia for 33 Russian citizens held in Ukraine could occur soon.  Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed to RBK that Moscow and Kyiv were negotiating a prisoner exchange, but he did not elaborate.  One of the sources told RBK that Russian journalist Kirill Vyshinsky, who used to be a Ukrainian citizen and is being held in Ukraine on high-treason charges of high, was not included in the exchange because Moscow wants his outright release.  It is also not clear if Ukrainian film director Oleh Sentsov would be among the individuals set for exchange. Sentsov, who openly protested Russia's illegal annexation of Ukraine's Crimea in 2014, is serving 20-year prison term in Russia on terrorism charges, which he and his supporters have rejected.  The sources told RBK that Ukrainian Ombudswoman Lyudmyla Denisova was in Moscow to work on the exchange. The TASS news agency reported on August 23 that her Russian counterpart, Tatyana Moskalkova, had arrived in Kyiv for a one-day visit.  Also on August 22, Russian lawyer Valentin Rybin told the TASS news agency that his three clients being held in Ukraine -- Russian citizens Maksim Odintsov, Aleksandr Baranov, and Yevgeny Mefyodov -- were going through judicial procedures in preparation for the exchange "in the nearest future."  On August 21, the Kommersant newspaper quoted sources close to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as saying that the exchange could take place by the end of August and among the Ukrainians set to be transferred to Kyiv could be 24 Ukrainian sailors detained by Russian forces in November near the Kerch Strait close to Russia-annexed Crimea.  The Moscow-based Memorial human rights center said this week that five Ukrainians held in Russia -- Volodymyr Balukh, Stanislav Klykh, Oleksandr Kolchenko, Pavlo Hryb, and Mykola Karpyuk -- had been transferred from labor camps in several different regions to the Lefortovo detention center in Moscow, possibly in advance of an exchange.  Kyiv has said that Russia illegally holds about 150 Ukrainian nationals on its territory. Ukrainian officials mentioned that figure when talking about the list of prisoners prepared for possible exchange by the two countries' ombudswomen in July.  The list of Russian citizens set for the swap has never been made public.  The United States and European Union have called on Russia to free dozens of Ukrainian citizens imprisoned in Russia, Moscow-annexed Crimea, and parts of eastern Ukraine that are controlled by Russia-backed separatists.  Russia seized control of Ukraine's Crimea region in March 2014, after sending in troops and staging a referendum dismissed as illegal by at least 100 countries. Moscow is also backing separatists in a war against Ukrainian government forces that has killed more than 13,000 people in eastern Ukraine since April 2014.


sputnik--2019-08-30--Russia Ukraine Will Not Exchange Prisoners on Friday Exact Date Not Set Yet - Ukraines Security S

Russia, Ukraine Will Not Exchange Prisoners on Friday, Exact Date Not Set Yet - Ukraine's Security Service

Ukraine and Russia will not exchange prisoners on Friday, and the exact date of the long-awaited swap has not been set yet, but nothing prevents it from taking place, the press secretary of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), Elena Gitlyanskaya, said.  "We do not reveal the date, but I can say it will not happen today. The final date has not been set yet," Gitlyanskaya said, as quoted by Obozrevatel news portal.  She also said that there were no obstacles to the exchange, adding that everything was "going as scheduled."  The office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy refuted on Friday claims that the country had already completed its prisoner exchange with Russia, stressing that the process continued.  "The process of mutual release of detained persons continues. Information about its completion does not reflect the reality," the office wrote on its Telegram channel.  An official announcement will be made when the exchange is completed, the Ukrainian presidential office noted.  Ukraine and Russia continue their negotiations on prisoner exchange, the press secretary of the Security Service of Ukraine, Elena Gitlyanskaya, said on Friday.  "Dear journalists, the complicated process of negotiations about prisoner exchange continues. Be patient, I hope it won't take long. Do not spread unverified information. Keeping our fingers crossed!" Gitlyanskaya wrote on Facebook.  Meanwhile, although the exact date of the exchange remains unknown, Ukrainian lawmaker Akhtem Chiygoz said on Thursday he expected it to take place on Friday.  Earlier, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that there are certain contacts in preparation for the prisoner exchange.  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appointed Ruslan Ryaboshapka, the deputy head of his presidential office, the country's prosecutor general, according to a decree issued early on Friday.  On Thursday, Ukrainian lawmakers supported Ryaboshapka's candidacy introduced by the president.


sputnik--2019-09-06--Zelenskyy Pardons Prisoners Being Prepared for Russia-Ukraine Simultaneous Release - Lawyer

"At the assembly point of the persons who participate in the exchange, there are almost all on the list agreed upon earlier. The Ukrainian side, taking into account the fact that people who are subject to a presidential decree on pardon, are delivered to the assembly point, has fulfilled almost all of its obligations achieved at the talks," Rybin said in a video message posted on his Facebook page.  The lawyer added that Kiev had excluded Russian Ruslan Gadzhiev from the Russia-Ukraine list for the simultaneous release of detainees and convicted persons.  "I learned about the exclusion from the list of Russian citizen Gadzhiev Ruslan Dzhupalovich," Rybin said in a video message, posted on his Facebook page.  Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok that the issue of prisoners' exchange would be settled in the near future.  Preparations for prisoners' exchange between Russia and Ukraine intensified after Volodymyr Zelenskyy became Ukraine's new president in May. According to Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Presidents of Russia and Ukraine, Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, discussed the situation surrounding the prisoners twice, during phone talks on 12 July and 7 August.  In the middle of July, Russia's Human Rights Ombudswoman Tatiana Moskalkova and her Ukrainian counterpart Lyudmila Denisova exchanged the lists of prisoners. Denisova's list contained the names of 150 people, while the Russian list had 34 names. Later, a spokesperson for Ukraine's Prosecutor General Larisa Sargan said there would be a "35 for 35" prisoners' swap between the two countries.


sputnik--2019-11-26--Saudi Coalition Releases 200 Houthi Prisoners as Backroom Yemen Peace Deal Edges Closer

On Tuesday, coalition spokesperson Turki al-Malki said in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency that 200 Houthi prisoners had been released as part of the Stockholm Agreement prisoner exchange, Xinhua News Agency reported.  International Committee of the Red Cross spokesperson Ruth Hetherington told Reuters the group was aware of the coalition’s “intention to release 200 detainees,” noting, “We are in contact with the parties in this regard. We are ready to facilitate the repatriation of these detainees.”  Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, a senior official in Ansar Allah, better known as the Houthi movement, told Reuters the movement welcomed the release, which follows the unilateral release of 350 coalition prisoners held by the Houthis in September.  The war in Yemen has raged since March 2015, when Yemeni President Adrabbuh Mansur Hadi fled the country for Riyadh amid a steady takeover by the Houthi movement and allied supporters of former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Hailing from a Zaidi Shiite minority near the Saudi border, the Houthis objected to Hadi’s federalization scheme for the country and his sharp slashing of social programs, as well as a sharp spike in gas prices that hit the Houthis especially hard.  However, Riyadh and its allies have failed to accomplish any of their goals in the conflict, which grows increasingly expensive in both money and international clout. At the same time, the Houthis have not only been able to hold on to existing territory amid Saudi strikes and Western weaponry, but in the last year they have repeatedly gone on the offensive, mounting missile strikes on airports, air bases and economically central oil facilities inside Saudi Arabia. The most dramatic but also most controversial example is the pair of strikes on Saudi Aramco facilities in Eastern Province in mid-September, for which Houthi claims of credit were contradicted by US intelligence, which pointed the finger at Iran.  The US has blamed Iran for the Houthis’ success, as have Tehran’s regional rivals, Israel and Saudi Arabia, which claim Iran is waging a proxy war in Yemen. However, no substantial intelligence has verified these claims, and experts have noted they defy reasonable explanation.  Meanwhile, signs increasingly point toward secret negotiations between the two sides being held in neighboring Oman for the past several weeks.  Other sources have lent increasing credence to the claims. Foreign Policy noted that Saudi Vice Minister of Defence Prince Khalid bin Salman (KBS), brother to de facto Saudi leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, paid a visit to Omani Sultan Qaboos bin Said in Muscat on November 11.  Former Yemeni Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Qirbi told the outlet KBS’ visit reflected “a commitment to a final comprehensive peace … and a realization that there is no military solution to the conflict. I believe Prince KBS hopefully has come with a new vision to put an end to a costly war which has created great regional stability.”  “The war has exhausted Saudi Arabia financially, and the worsening military situation in its south is not in its best interest,” Nabeel Khoury, the former deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Sana’a, told the US-based outlet Al-Monitor on Tuesday. “The fact that Prince Khalid has been assigned the Yemeni dossier is positive because it is a complicated issue and it needs a full-time decision-maker who Mohammed bin Salman trusts.”  It’s far from the first attempt at a peace deal: a September ceasefire in the aftermath of the Saudi Aramco attacks fell apart almost as quickly as it was created, and local ceasefires, such as that agreed to in December 2018 around the vital port city of Hudaydah, have seen thousands of violations.  Omani Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs Yousuf Bin Alawi said on Omani media Tuesday that there was a reciprocal desire for stability and security, Abu Dhabi-based Gulf News reported, noting the minister declined to further elaborate. The outlet noted his remarks followed a meeting with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.  Emirati Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash has also expressed support for the talks, noting at a political conference earlier this month in Abu Dhabi the possibility of the Houthis being involved in a future Yemeni government.  "Such an agreement must take account of the legitimate aspirations of all parts of Yemeni society. That includes the Houthis," Gargash said, according to a Tuesday report from the London-based New Arab. "Houthi militias have wreaked havoc on the country, but they are a part of Yemeni society and they will have a role in its future."  News of the prisoner release is accompanied Tuesday by claims of a large-scale air raid on the Red Sea port of Mocha, also known as al-Makha, which is controlled by coalition-aligned forces.  Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saria told the group’s al-Masirah TV Monday the raid involved nine ballistic missiles and 20 drones and was in response to a previous attack by the targeted group against Hudaydah, which serves as a lifeline for the northern part of the country to the outside world. Saria said the strikes killed or injured more than 350 coalition troops and destroyed arms depots, armored vehicles and US-made Patriot air defense systems.  "In recent weeks there have been entire 48-hour periods without airstrikes at all - the first time since the conflict began,” Griffiths said via video conference from his office in Amman, Jordan. “We call this a de-escalation and a reduction in the tempo of the war, and perhaps we hope a move to an overall ceasefire in Yemen that … many members of this Council have been calling for a very long time.”


tass--2019-06-27--Russian Foreign Ministry welcomes handover of prisoners by Donbass republics

"This is an issue of direct contacts between Kiev, the DPR and the LPR, however, we welcome the fact [of the handover]," he said, commenting on Thursday’s meeting between head of the Political Council of the Ukrainian Party "Opposition Platform - For Life" Viktor Medvedchuk and DPR and LPR heads Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik.  MOSCOW, June 27. /TASS/. Moscow welcomes the handover of detained persons by the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) to the Ukrainian side, Russian Foreign Ministry Deputy Spokesman Artyom Kozhin said on Thursday.  On the outcomes of the meeting, Donbass republics’ leaders have agreed to release four detained persons as a gesture of good will. The handover of four prisoners held in the DPR and the LPR will take place on Friday in Minsk.  The Donbass republics’ leaders expect that this bilateral step would motivate the Ukrainian side to begin the process of the so-called "all identified for all identified" prisoner exchange in accordance with the Minsk Agreements. "The Ukrainian side continues to examine the exchange lists with the LPR and the DPR," Medvedchuk assured  On June 19, members of the political subgroup of the Contact Group for the settlement in eastern Ukraine have discussed the possibility of prisoner exchange and agreed to exchange the necessary information. According to DPR human rights commissioner Daria Morozova, the exchange of detained persons between the DPR and Ukraine may take place in autumn of this year, if the Ukrainian side fulfills all the conditions necessary to ensure this process.  The last large-scale exchange of detainees between Ukraine and the Donbass republics took place on December 27, 2017. Back then, Kiev exchanged 233 prisoners for 73 detained Ukrainian citizens. The parties underlined that the release of prisoners was not over and they would make every effort to continue this process. However, since then, the parties have been failing to reach new agreements on mutual release and exchange of prisoners.


tass--2019-12-22--Ukraine creating new obstacles for exchange of prisoners - Lavrov

MOSCOW, December 22. /TASS/. Kiev is creating obstacles for the exchange of prisoners with the self-proclaimed republics in Donbass insisting on the procedural clearance, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Sunday.  "[The Normandy Four summit] in Paris called on the Contact Group to agree the lists for the exchange in the all identified for all identified format," he said in an interview with the Bolshaya Igra (Big Game) program on Russia’s television Channel One. "The ultimate goal is ‘all-for-all’ but when over all these years they have been agreeing the lists, it turned out that not all of them happened to be mutually confirmed. Some lists are recognized by both sides as the lists of real people, with everyone knowing where there people are kept and how they can be released and exchanged. It was clearly fixed and it was discussed by the leaders - Vladimir Putin (of Russia) and Vladimir Zelensky (of Ukraine) in the presence of [German Chancellor] Angela Merkel and [French President] Emmanuel Macron. They agreed that these people have been identified, their name are on the lists and hence they will be exchange."  "Now, a new criteria has emerged in the Contact Group: not all of those identified are "procedurally cleared." It means a new obstacle hampering these people be home by the New Year and Christmas," Lavrov noted.  A Normandy Four summit crisis was held in Paris on December 9, for the first time after a three-year break. Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia, Emmanuel Macron of Germany, Vladimir Zelensky of Ukraine and German Chancellor Angela Merkel gathered in the Elysee Palace to discuss ways of settling the conflict in Donbass.  The seven-hours talks yielded a final document committing to paper a number of concrete accords. Among the summit’s expected results was an agreement to exchange prisoners-of-war in Donbass under the formula of "all identified for all identified" by the yearend and to disengage forces at three more sections of the contact line by March 2020.  However, the Contact Group that met in Minsk on December 18 failed to reach an agreement on concrete measures on the implementation of the summit’s document.


tass--2019-12-29--LPR fulfills all conditions for Dec 29 prisoners swap — envoy

LUGANSK, December 28. /TASS/. The authorities of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) have fulfilled all conditions for the prisoners swap between Ukraine and Donbass planned for December 29, the republic’s envoy to the humanitarian subgroup of the Contact Group for the settlement in Ukraine, head of the LPR’s group on prisoners swap Olga Kobtseva said on Saturday.  "Following the results of verification of detained persons on December 27 and 28, almost all people requested by our side, whose location has been identified, have confirmed their consent to be swapped," she was quoted as saying by the LuganskInformCenter news agency. "We deeply hope that the Ukrainian side will fulfill the commitments announced within the framework of the Normandy meeting, and a full-fledged exchange under the ‘all identified for all identified’ formula will be held tomorrow," she said, adding that "all required conditions have been fulfilled from LPR’s side."  The prisoner exchange is expected near the Gorlovka-Mayorskoye point of entry/exit on the line of contact between the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and Ukraine early on Sunday. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky confirmed Kiev’s readiness earlier on Saturday. According to DPR’s Commissioner for Human Rights Darya Morozova, Donetsk and Lugansk will hand over 55 people to Kiev and expect to receive 87 people.


tass--2019-12-30--Among prisoners returned to Kiev are 12 servicemen and 64 civilians — SBU

KIEV, December 29. /TASS/. Among prisoners who were returned to Kiev by Donbass are 12 servicemen and 64 civilians, the press service of Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) said on Sunday.  "As a result of the exchange, 12 servicemen returned home, three of which were held captive on the territory of separate parts of Donestk and Lugansk regions since 2015, and 64 civilians, 17 of which were held captive since 2015 and 2016," the press service said.  On December 29, Kiev and Donbass exchanged prisoners near the Gorlovka — Mayorskoye checkpoint. According to preliminary reports, Kiev handed over 124 people to Donbass, while Donbass handed over 76 people to Kiev.


theguardianuk--2019-12-29--Ukraine and Russia-backed separatists exchange 200 prisoners

Ukrainian authorities and Russia-backed separatists in the war-torn east of Ukraine have exchanged 200 prisoners, swapping detained fighters for civilians and service personnel held captive in some cases for years.  The exchange provoked outrage in government-held Ukraine after Kyiv handed over to separatists five riot police suspected of killing protesters during a pro-western uprising in 2014 as part of the swap.  “The mutual release of the detainees has ended,” the Ukrainian presidential office said in a statement on Facebook, specifying that Kyiv received 76 captives. Separatist officials said the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk received 124.  Stanyslav Aseyev and Oleg Galazyuk, journalists who contributed to the Ukrainian service of the US-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, were also freed by rebels.  The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, and the French president, Emmanuel Macron, hailed the swap as “positive” in a joint statement.  The exchange came after Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, held their first face-to-face talks in Paris on 9 December and agreed measures to de-escalate Europe’s only active war.  Prisoners filed off coaches at the Mayorske checkpoint in the eastern Donetsk region, many carrying plastic bags stuffed with their belongings, as uniformed soldiers and ambulances were on standby.  Among the group of detainees handed over by the separatists were those who said they had been held for several years after getting caught up in the conflict while visiting relatives.  Volodymyr Danylchenko, who said he had spent three years in captivity, said he was at a loss for words. “I myself don’t understand what’s happened,” said the 36-year-old, adding that he was leaving his mother behind in Lugansk.  Another detainee released by the separatists, who gave her name as Victoria, said she had been held for three years. “I am so happy,” the 24-year-old said. She said she had been convicted of “state treason” and sentenced to 12 years in prison after arriving in the Lugansk region to see her parents.  Another woman being handed to Kyiv sported a handwritten sign on her clothing: “My country is Ukraine!”  The December summit between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders, mediated by France and Germany, was the first of its kind in three years.  The latest swap comes three months after Ukraine carried out a long-awaited exchange with Russia of 35 prisoners each. In 2017 more than 230 separatists were swapped for more than 70 of their counterparts.  Ties between Ukraine and Russia were shredded after the 2014 uprising ousted a Kremlin-backed regime. Moscow went on to annex Crimea and support insurgents in eastern Ukraine, who had launched a bid for independence. Since then more than 13,000 people have been killed in the conflict.  The release of the riot police has raised concerns in Ukraine, with many fearing the country is being pushed to pay too high a price for the swap. The officers are suspected to have been involved in a crackdown on protesters in 2014. About 100 demonstrators were shot dead during the uprising.  Before the swap, the Ukrainian prosecutor general’s office said the trial of the five suspects would continue, and the defendants would still have to appear in court.  Three former riot police officers had earlier been released from custody while another two had been freed from house arrest. About 200 people protesting against the release of the officers gathered near the detention centre in Kyiv where the three suspects were held. “This country has no future,” Volodymyr Golodnyuk, the father of a 19-year protester who was killed in the uprising, wrote on Facebook.  In an open letter to Zelenskiy, victims’ families warned that the release of the suspects could lead to a “wave of protests”.  Since coming to power in May, the former comedian has sought to kickstart a peace process to end the conflict.


themoscowtimes--2019-06-27--Pro-Russian Rebels Agree to Release 4 Ukrainian Prisoners

Rebels in the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics have for the past five years been at war with government forces in eastern Ukraine. Prisoner exchanges are stipulated in an internationally brokered ceasefire agreement that has regularly been violated since entering into force in early 2015.  Two pro-Russian separatist republics in eastern Ukraine have agreed to release four Ukrainian prisoners as a “goodwill gesture” later this week, news agencies reported Thursday.  Donetsk and Luhansk have agreed to release the four Ukrainian captives, three of them soldiers, on Friday, the state-run TASS news agency reported.  The head of Donetsk said he hoped the move would “stimulate” an all-for-all exchange. The head of Luhansk said the time and place of the release will be announced Friday.  The latest release was reportedly negotiated by Viktor Medvedchuk, a prominent Ukrainian politician with close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. In 2017, Medvedchuk had urged Putin to press the separatist leaders to agree to a prisoner swap.  Later on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on Putin to release the 24 Ukrainian sailors who were captured in the Kerch Strait, which links the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, late last year.


themoscowtimes--2019-12-10--Putin and Zelenskiy, in First Talks, Agree to Exchange Prisoners

Russia's Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in their first face-to-face meeting, took part in nine hours of talks in Paris, brokered by French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.  The leaders of Russia and Ukraine agreed on Tuesday to exchange all remaining prisoners from the conflict in east Ukraine by the end of the year, but left thorny questions about the region's status for future talks.  The conflict in eastern Ukraine that broke out in 2014 has killed more than 13,000 people, left a large swathe of Ukraine de facto controlled by Moscow-backed separatists and aggravated the deepest east-west rift since the Cold War.  The body language between Putin and Zelenskiy, a comedian-turned-politician elected earlier this year on a promise to resolve the conflict, was chilly. There was no public handshake, and they avoided eye contact.  But the talks did deliver specific commitments. A final communique set out the prisoner exchange and a renewed commitment to implement an existing ceasefire agreement in eastern Ukraine's Donbass region that has never fully taken hold as well as enhanced powers for international ceasefire monitors.  The sides also said they had agreed, over the next four months, to work towards local elections in Donbass, a major stumbling block up to now. There were no details though on how the votes would be conducted, and Macron acknowledged there were still disagreements on the subject.  "We have made progress on disengagement, prisoner exchanges, ceasefire and a political evolution," Macron said at a news conference at which Zelenskiy and Putin sat separated by Merkel and Macron. "We have asked our ministers in the coming four months to work on this."  In addition, Zelenskiy said he and Putin had worked out the outline of an agreement that would allow the transit of Russian natural gas to continue across Ukrainian soil. He gave no details. A member of the Russian delegation said officials had been instructed to hammer out details.  However, there was no definitive agreement on the political issues that stand in the way of resolving the conflict. These include the status of Donbass within Ukraine and who should de facto control the border between Donbass and Russia.  Another round of talks in the so-called Normandy format, brokered by France and Germany, will be held within four months.  Ukraine's industrial Donbass region spun out of Kiev's control in 2014, soon after street protests ousted a pro-Moscow leader in the Ukrainian capital and Russia sent in armed men to seize Ukraine's Black Sea Crimea region.  A 2015 ceasefire deal was signed in Minsk, the capital of Belarus. But fighting still flares up in Donbass four years on, and a peace deal has been elusive. Monday's summit was the first time the four leaders have met under the Normandy format since 2016.  Many Ukrainians are concerned about compromising with Russia. They see Putin as an aggressor seeking to restore the Kremlin's influence on the former Soviet republic and ruin Ukraine's aspiration for closer European ties.  Protesters who have warned Zelenskiy about making concessions to Putin in Paris were camped outside the presidential administration in Kiev, watching the summit news conference on a big screen.  Zelenskiy, who sparred verbally with Russian journalists at the news conference, said he had given no ground on Ukraine's sovereignty or territorial integrity. He said he and Putin had disagreed on several issues.  Asked who triumphed in their exchanges, Zelenskiy said: "I don't know who (beat) who. I think it would be appropriate to be diplomatic as we've just started talking. Let's say for now it's a draw."  Putin, for his part, is unwilling to be seen to bend to outside pressure over eastern Ukraine, and he does not want to be seen to be leaving the Russian-speaking population of Donbass at the mercy of the Kiev government.  He expressed only cautious hope for the peace talks. "All this gives us the grounds to suppose that the process is developing in the right direction," he said.  Sticking to his cool tone, when he ended his remarks to journalists in Paris, Putin thanked Merkel and Macron warmly but offered no pleasantries to Zelenskiy.


thetelegraph--2019-09-07--Russia and Ukraine swapping prisoners in landmark exchange

A long-awaited swap of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine was underway on Saturday, sources and state media said, with 70 people involved in the landmark exchange.  A Ukrainian government source told AFP the swap was proceeding and that 35 people on each side would be exchanged.  A number of high-profile prisoners are expected to be part of the exchange.  Earlier Saturday an AFP journalist in Moscow saw two buses with tinted windows leaving the high-security Lefortovo jail escorted by a police convoy.  Russia's state-run news channel Rossiya 24 said the convoy had departed "within the framework of preparations for a prisoner exchange".


thetorontostar--2019-12-29--Ukraine, eastern rebels swap prisoners in move to end war

MAIORSK CHECKPOINT, Ukraine - Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine began exchanging prisoners Sunday in a move aimed at ending their 5-year-long war.  The move was part of an agreement brokered earlier this month at a summit of the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France.  A rebel government official and the Ukrainian president’s office confirmed that the swap has started.  In total, 142 prisoners were expected to be exchanged at a checkpoint near Horlivka in eastern Ukraine — 55 released by the rebels and 87 by Ukraine.  The last major prisoner swap between separatist rebels and Ukrainian forces took place in December 2017, with 233 rebels exchanged for 73 Ukrainians.  The fighting in eastern Ukraine since 2014 has killed more than 14,000 people.  Get more of the Star in your inbox Never miss the latest news from the Star. Sign up for our newsletters to get today's top stories, your favourite columnists and lots more in your inbox Sign Up Now

Evgeniy Maloletka - The Associated Press


unian--2019-08-27--Moscow Kyiv may swap prisoners this week lawyer

Moscow, Kyiv may swap prisoners this week – lawyer

There is still no final decision on how many people will be on the lists from both sides.  Lawyer of certain Russians held in Ukraine Valentyn Rybin says the Russian and Ukrainian sides on Tuesday will resume preparations for the prisoner swap to carry it out before the end of the week.  Read alsoZelensky: First results on prisoner swap should be in coming days  "I expect the swap will take place this week. I can't tell the exact date yet. The fact is that there has been days off in Ukraine since August 24. Active work will resume from Tuesday and we'll see the progress on this issue. One way or another, everything should happen soon," he told the Russian newspaper Izvestia on August 27.  According to the lawyer, now the sides are solving the issue of lifting all charges from people declared for the swap. This refers not only to the issue of "political will," but also to legal nuances.  The journalists' sources familiar with the situation say the information pause in coordinating swap lists is due to the "sensitivity of the issue." According to them, the case is at its final stage. However, it's too early to announce the final date so as not to "interfere with the resolution of the issue."  At the same time, there is still no final decision on how many people will be on the lists from both sides. One of the journalists' sources said "the 33 to 33 formula spread in the media is conditional since there is still no clarity on some persons."  Lawyers of former chief editor of RIA Novosti Ukraine Kirill Vyshinsky told Izvestia his client was not going to participate in the swap since he was determined to defend his innocence in a Ukrainian court.  Moreover, there is no clarity about the exchange of 22 Ukrainian sailors and two SBU officers captured by Russia in the Kerch Strait in November 2018. Speaking to journalists, their lawyer Nikolay Polozov refrained from making statements, adding that "certain processes are underway, but we are not commenting on them yet." According to other sources, a final decision on their participation in the swap has not yet been made.  The Kremlin earlier confirmed Russia was in contact with Ukraine on the issue of the prisoner swap.  Ukraine and the Russian Federation have reached a preliminary agreement on the exchange of held persons under the 33-for-33 formula, according to sources from the Russian news agency RBC.


unian--2019-08-30--No official meeting of Ukrainian prisoners planned in airport media

No official meeting of Ukrainian prisoners planned in airport – media

They are set to be immediately taken to the hospital, according to a non-confirmed report.  There will be no official meeting of Ukrainian POW sailors and political prisoners, released from Russia, at the Kyiv airport.  They are supposed to be taken to the hospital immediately upon arrival, Krym.Realii reports with reference to a source in the Command of the Armed forces of Ukraine.  Relatives of POW sailors, on condition of anonymity, also said no meeting was scheduled in the airport.  Read alsoProcess of prisoner swap with Russia not yet completed – President's Office  No confirmation of these reports came from official and independent sources.  During previous stages of prisoner swap, released persons underwent treatment at the Scientific and Practical Center for Preventive and Clinical Medicine of the State Administration of Ukraine.  As UNIAN reported earlier, the newly elected Prosecutor General of Ukraine Ruslan Riaboshapka said that the exchange of prisoners with Russia took place and Ukrainian political prisoners, including Sentsov, Balukh, and Hryb, were returning to Ukraine.  Relatives of prisoners of war were allegedly informed that they had already arrived in Ukraine.  At the same time, the Office of the President's Office refuted the reports on the completion of swap, adding that the process was ongoing and the official reports would follow once it is completed.


unian--2019-09-09--Putins spokesperson refuses to disclose names of those swapped for Ukrainian sailors prisoners

Putin's spokesperson refuses to disclose names of those swapped for Ukrainian sailors, prisoners

Peskov said he would not comment on the prisoner swap list.  Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov has refused to disclose the names of those individuals whom Ukraine transferred to Russia on September 7 in exchange for captive Ukrainian sailors and political prisoners.  When Peskov was told that he himself had promised to announce the complete prisoner swap list, the Kremlin representative said: "I'd leave this question unanswered, I do not comment on it at all," the Meduza news outlet reported.  As UNIAN reported earlier, Peskov did not comment whether the Ukrainians who were transferred to Moscow as part of the prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine could be granted Russian citizenship. In particular, Ukrainian citizen Volodymyr Tsemakh, who is suspected of involvement in the downing of flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine in July 2014, was reportedly put on the prisoner exchange list at the Kremlin's request.  Asked to explain why Putin had not met at the airport those detainees who were exchanged for the Ukrainian sailors and political prisoners, the Kremlin's spokesman said it was "not the prerogative of the president of the Russian Federation."  "The head of state had come his part of the path so that this exchange took place. And unlike arrival at the airport or not – this is the main thing," he said.


unian--2019-12-29--Prisoner swap: Twenty prisoners refuse to return to occupied Donbas

The exact number of prisoners to be exchanged has not yet been specified.  So-called "ombudsperson" of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic" ("DPR") Daria Morozova says about 20 prisoners held in Ukrainian prisons have refused to return to the temporarily occupied areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions (eastern Ukraine) and wished to remain in the territory controlled by Kyiv.  "We are ready to hand over 55 people to the Ukrainian side, while they [are ready to return] 87 persons. However, the exact figures have not yet been determined," she said, adding that 20 people have refused to return to the territory that is beyond Ukraine's control, according to Russian media.  As UNIAN reported earlier, the prisoner swap of held persons between Ukraine government and representatives of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics" ("DPR"/"LPR") began at the Mayorsk checkpoint at 11:00 Kyiv time on Sunday, according to the Ukrainian President's Office. The exact number of prisoners to be exchanged has not yet been specified.  Earlier, participants in the Trilateral Contact Group on Donbas settlement agreed on the mutual release of held persons to be held before the end of the year. According to Russian media, the "big swap" is scheduled for December 29.


upi--2019-12-29--Ukrainian government, Russian-backed separatists exchange 200 prisoners

Dec. 29 (UPI) -- Ukraine's government and Russian-backed separatists swapped 200 prisoners Sunday in an effort to end a standoff in the Donbas region.  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's office confirmed on Twitter that 76 prisoners held by separatists had been returned to the government and representatives for the Luhansk and Donetsk regions of Ukraine said the government returned 124 separatist prisoners.  The prisoner exchange Sunday made good on promises in peace talks between Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Paris at the beginning of December.  Nine people elected not to return to the separatists in Luhansk and four refused to return to the government in Kyiv.  The exchange took place at a checkpoint in east Ukraine, where violent conflicts following the Russian annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014 has resulted in more than 13,000 deaths.  Among those freed in the exchange were soldiers, activists, alleged spies and riot police officers accused of shooting protesters during the 2014 revolution.  The exchange was viewed as a victory for Zelensky, who was elected in April after campaigning to release Ukrainian prisoners and end the war.  The U.S. embassy in Kyiv issued a statement on Twitter praising the exchange.  "Recognizing that Russia's ongoing aggression confronts Ukraine's leadership with difficult choices, we stand in solidarity with our Ukrainian partners and the many Ukrainians who remain in captivity in Russia and Crimea," it said.


france24--2019-09-07--Film director Oleg Sentsov among 70 released in Russia-Ukraine prisoner swap

Gleb Garanich, REUTERS | Ukrainian film director Oleg Sentsov, who was jailed on terrorism charges in Russia, gets off a plane in Kiev after Russia-Ukraine prisoner swap, at Borispil International Airport, outside Kiev, Ukraine September 7, 2019.  Russia and Ukraine carried out a long-awaited swap of 70 prisoners on Saturday, in a deal hailed by President Volodymyr Zelensky as a “first step” towards ending their conflict.  Planes carrying 35 prisoners from each side landed simultaneously in Moscow and Kiev, where relatives waiting at the airport broke into applause.  “We have taken the first step,” Zelensky said on the tarmac after greeting and hugging former prisoners at the airport. "We have to take all the steps to finish this horrible war."  Among those swapped were 24 Ukrainian sailors, Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov and Russian journalist Kyrylo Vyshynsky.  Ukraine’s SBU security service confirmed that Vladimir Tsemakh, a fighter with Russian-backed separatists considered a key witness in the downing of flight MH17, was also released as part of the swap.  Anticipation had been building for days for the exchange, which involved weeks of behind-the-scenes negotiations.  Relations between Kiev and Moscow nose-dived in 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea and Moscow backed separatists in the eastern industrial regions of Donetsk and Lugansk. Fighting there has claimed more than 13,000 lives over the past five years. Zelensky’s election in April has raised hopes that the stalled peace process could be revived. The comedian-turned-politician vowed during his campaign to have Ukrainian prisoners in Russia returned and has said ending the conflict with Russia is his top priority. Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week that the exchange would be “a huge step towards normalising relations” with Kiev. The release of Sentsov will be seen as a major victory for Kiev. The 43-year-old was Ukraine’s most famous political prisoner and the subject of a star-studded international campaign calling for his release. He was arrested in 2014 and had been serving a 20-year sentence in an Arctic penal colony for planning ‘terrorist attacks’ in Crimea. “I thank all the people who have fought for us,” Sentsov said at the airport in Kiev. The sailors, including two members of Ukraine’s SBU security services, were detained last year when Russia seized three Ukrainian vessels off Crimea. Among those handed over to Russia was Vyshynsky, a journalist at Russia’s RIA Novosti state news agency who was facing charges of “high treason” but was released on bail late last month. The release of Tsemakh, an alleged air defence specialist for pro-Russian separatists, prompted concern from the Netherlands as he is considered a person of interest in the MH17 case. The Malaysia Airlines passenger plane travelling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was shot down by a Russian-made BUK missile in 2014 over eastern Ukraine, with the loss of all 298 people on board. France has pushed for a resolution to the conflict, calling for a summit of the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany later this month. French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian called for fresh efforts to implement the 2015 Minsk ceasefire deal, "in order to secure the liberation of all prisoners taken in this conflict." On Monday, Le Drian heads to the Russian capital along with France’s defence minister for the first high-level "2+2"talks with their Russian counterparts since Moscow's 2014 annexation of Crimea.


france24--2019-12-10--Russia and Ukraine leaders, in first talks, agree to prisoner swap

The leaders of Russia and Ukraine agreed on Tuesday to exchange all remaining prisoners from the conflict in east Ukraine by the end of the year, but left thorny questions about the region's status for future talks.  Russia's Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in their first face-to-face meeting, took part in nine hours of talks in Paris, brokered by French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.  The conflict in eastern Ukraine that broke out in 2014 has killed more than 13,000 people and aggravated the deepest east-west rift since the Cold War.  Meeting for the first time since Zelenskiy, a comedian-turned-politician, was elected earlier this year on a promise to resolve the conflict, the body language between him and Putin was chilly. There was no public handshake, and they avoided eye contact.  But the talks deliver specific commitments, with a final communique setting out the prisoner exchange, as well as a renewed commitment to implement an existing ceasefire agreement in eastern Ukraine's Donbass region that has never fully taken hold.  In addition, Zelenskiy said he and Putin had worked out the outline of an agreement that would allow the transit of Russian natural gas to continue across Ukrainian soil. A member of the Russian delegation said officials had been instructed to hammer out details.  "We have made progress on disengagement, prisoner exchanges, ceasefire and a political evolution," Macron said at a news conference at which Zelenskiy and Putin sat separated by Merkel and Macron.  "We have asked our ministers in the coming four months to work on this... with a view to organising local elections in four months," he said, acknowledging there remained differences on the calendar.  However, there was no definitive agreement on the political issues that stand in the way of resolving the conflict. These include the status of Donbass within Ukraine, who should de facto control the border between Donbass and Russia, and how local elections in the region should be conducted.  Agreement was reached to hold another round of talks in the so-called Normandy format, brokered by France and Germany, within four months.  There has been scant sign of a peaceful solution to the crisis despite a 2015 ceasefire deal in Minsk, the capital of Belarus. Monday's summit is the first time the four leaders have met under the Normandy format since 2016.  Many Ukrainians are concerned about compromising with Russia. They see Putin as an aggressor seeking to restore the Kremlin's influence on the former Soviet republic and ruin Ukraine's aspiration for closer European ties.  Protesters who have warned Zelenskiy about making concessions to Putin in Paris were camped outside the presidential palace in Kiev, watching the final news conference on a big screen.  Putin, too, is unwilling to be seen to bend to outside pressure over eastern Ukraine, and does not want to be seen to be leaving the Russian-speaking population of Donbass at the mercy of the government in Kiev.


france24--2019-12-29--Ukraine begins prisoner swap with pro-Russian separatists

Ukrainian prisoners are escorted by pro-Russian separatists near the Mayorsk crossing point in the Donetsk region on December 29, 2019.  Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine have started an all-for-all prisoner swap, after which all remaining prisoners of the five-year conflict should return home, the office of Ukraine's president said on Sunday.  The agreement was concluded by Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Paris in December.  The swap is taking place at a check point near the industrial town of Horlivka in the Donetsk region.  Russia's RIA news agency, citing a local official from the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic, said Kiev would hand over 87 separatists, while Donetsk would return 55 pro-central government fighters.  Kiev's forces have been battling separatists in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine since 2014 in a conflict that has claimed more than 13,000 lives. Sporadic fighting continues despite a ceasefire agreement.  There have been several prisoner exchanges between Kiev and the rebels. In the last swap, conducted in December 2017, Ukraine handed over about 300 captives to pro-Russian separatists and took back around 70.  Relations between Ukraine and Russia collapsed following Moscow's annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014, and its subsequent supporut for separatists in the eastern Donbass region.  President Zelenskiy won a landslide election victory in April promising to end the conflict.  Widely criticized domestically for his plan to grant special status to Donbass to help end the five-year conflict, Zelenskiy's latest actions have given rise to cautious optimism.  In September, after a carefully negotiated rapprochement, Russia and Ukraine swapped dozens of prisoners. The move brought Western praise and hopes that relations between Moscow and Kiev could thaw.  The released Ukrainians included sailors detained by Russia during a clash in waters off Crimea last year, and filmmaker Oleg Sentsov, jailed in Russia.  The meeting of Ukrainian, Russian, German and French leaders earlier this month in Paris renewed optimism for a resolution to the conflict, and confirmed the relevance of an early peace agreement signed in Belarusian capital Minsk in 2015.  Relations between the two countries are also unlikely to be aggravated by a dispute in the gas sector, where Kiev and Moscow are arguing about a new transit contract to replace the current agreement which expires at the end of the year.  Ukraine has repeatedly accused Russia of using natural gas supplies to put pressure on the neighbouring state, but last week the parties managed to agree on the main points of a new deal.


rferl--2019-08-30--Ukrainian President Denies Prisoner Swap With Russia Completed Says Negotiations Ongoing

Ukrainian President Denies Prisoner Swap With Russia Completed, Says Negotiations Ongoing

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says that negotiations to exchange prisoners with Russia are continuing despite earlier unconfirmed reports that a swap had been completed.  "The process of the mutual release of individuals held is in progress," the Ukrainian presidential office said in a post on its official Facebook page on August 30.  "Information about its completion does not correspond to reality," it added.  The post described reports to the contrary as "disinformation" and said that when a prisoner exchange is completed, "the president's office will announce it on official channels."  The post came after relatives of one of the 24 sailors being held by Russia told RFE/RL's Crimean Desk that they all had been freed.  That claim came after Ukraine's prosecutor-general reposted comments from a Ukrainian parliament member saying Ukraine and Russia had carried out a swap of prisoners, including Ukrainian sailors captured by Russian forces last year and Ukrainian film director Oleh Sentsov.  Russian foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov told journalists in Moscow on August 30 that negotiations regarding a possible prisoner exchange are "taking place behind closed doors, but I can confirm that there is some progress," according to Interfax.  Anticipation had been growing for such a swap after Russian media reported on August 29 that Sentsov -- whose imprisonment has been criticized by Kyiv, Western governments, and human rights groups -- had been moved from a remote prison in Russia’s Arctic region to a facility in Moscow.  Sentsov has been imprisoned in Russia since opposing Moscow's takeover of his native Crimea in March 2014.  On August 30, two Ukrainian opposition politicians said they had met with two imprisoned Ukrainian nationals in Russia. Viktor Medvedchuk, leader of the Opposition Platform-For Life and one of the two representatives from the party to travel to Moscow at the request of relatives of jailed Ukrainians, told the television channel 112 Ukraina that they had met with Stanislav Kykh and Mykoa Karpyuk and were seeking their release, which he said was a long-term effort. He noted that the issue of negotiating any exchange was up to government authorities.  Kykh and Karpyuk are among five Ukrainians that the Moscow-based Memorial human rights center on August 20 said had been transferred from labor camps in several different regions to the Lefortovo detention center in Moscow.  The Kommersant newspaper has cited sources close to Zelenskiy as saying that a broad prisoner exchange could take place by the end of August and that the Ukrainians set to be transferred to Kyiv could include at least some of the 24 Ukrainian sailors detained by Russian forces in November near the Kerch Strait close to Russia-annexed Crimea.      Kyiv has said that Russia illegally holds about 150 Ukrainian nationals on its territory. Ukrainian officials mentioned that figure when talking about the list of prisoners prepared for possible exchange by the two countries' ombudswomen in July.      The list of Russian citizens set for the swap has never been made public.      Reports about Sentsov’s transfer to Moscow come a day after a court in Ukraine ordered jailed Russian journalist Kirill Vyshinsky to be freed on his own recognizance and released from custody before his trial on treason charges.