Istanbul agreements

Kremlin signals negotiating position shift

The demands Russia presented Ukraine with during the Istanbul talks in early 2022, and has been referring back to in all subsequent peace negotiations, are “no longer relevant,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on March 11.

11 March, 10:32 PM

Kremlin rejects Western security guarantees, aims to control all of Ukraine - ISW

By categorically rejecting U.S.-backed Western security guarantees for Ukraine, the Kremlin is exposing its true long-standing goal of taking control of all of Ukraine, analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) wrote on Aug. 21.

22 August 2025, 11:53 AM

Over 1,000 Ukrainian POWs freed in massive Russia swap

More than 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers were released from Russian captivity on July 23 as part of the ninth prisoner of war (POW) exchange agreed upon by Ukrainian and Russian delegations during talks in Istanbul.

24 July 2025, 10:13 AM

Klymenko: Russia returns own soldiers’ bodies with Ukrainians’

Russia has returned the bodies of its own soldiers along with those of fallen Ukrainian servicemembers during recent repatriations, Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on June 16.

16 June 2025, 06:25 PM

Ukraine, Russia repatriate thousands of fallen under Istanbul accord

Ukraine has received the bodies of another 1,245 people — including military personnel — from Russia, concluding the repatriation process agreed under the Istanbul agreements, the Ukrainian Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War announced on June 16.

16 June 2025, 03:40 PM

Ukraine receives 1,200 fallen citizens’ remains from Russia

Ukraine repatriated the bodies of 1,200 Ukrainian citizens, including soldiers, on June 14, as part of an Istanbul agreement, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War reported on Telegram.

14 June 2025, 03:45 PM

Ukraine repatriates 1,212 fallen soldiers as body exchange with Russia resumes

Ukraine repatriated the bodies of 1,212 soldiers who died on the front lines, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War reported on June 11.

11 June 2025, 01:22 PM

Second phase of Ukraine-Russia prisoner exchange returns more warriors

Ukraine and Russia carried out the second phase of a prisoner exchange on June 10, repatriating severely wounded and ill Ukrainian soldiers from Russian captivity, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on X on June 10.

10 June 2025, 07:02 PM

Ukraine's Defense Minister Umerov confirms ongoing POW exchanges with Russia

Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov confirmed that the exchange of prisoners with Russia, part of the agreements reached in Istanbul, will proceed over the next few days, adding that negotiations are "ongoing continuously," according to a Telegram post on June 9.

9 June 2025, 05:25 PM

Putin open to peace talks, names mediators

Moscow has not abandoned peace talks with Kyiv, but only on the basis of the Istanbul agreements from March 2022, claimed Russian dictator Vladimir Putin speaking at a panel discussion at the Eastern Economic Forum in the city of Vladivostok on Sept. 5.

5 September 2024, 01:44 PM

Istanbul agreements