Repatriation of military defenders will begin next week

Kirill Budanov, head of the Defense Ministry’s GUR, reported on his Telegram channel on June 8 that Ukraine is under information pressure and is attempting to avoid unilateral conditions for prisoner exchanges.

He emphasized that the Ukrainian side adheres to the obligations concluded during the Istanbul standoff and that decisions on the exchange cannot be made without mutual consent.

“The decision on who, when, and how to exchange cannot be made by one person. We continue our preparations. Pressure and manipulation are unacceptable,” Budanov said.

He also took a critical stance on Russian propaganda, which, in his opinion, speculated on the topic of the exchange without cynicism, particularly during critical religious holidays.

“The attempts of Russian propagandists to exploit the human grief to which they are involved, especially during the Trinity holiday, look particularly cynical,” he added.

Budanov noted that the Coordination Headquarters is actively working on organizing repatriation by the approved plan. It is expected that the first steps following the Istanbul talks will begin next week.

“Authorized persons were informed on Tuesday. Everything is going according to plan despite the enemy’s dirty information campaign,” he summarized.

Interestingly, another prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia was planned for June 7, but the agreements were not implemented due to non-fulfillment by the Russian side.