Ukraine’s representative in Trilateral Contact Group: New prisoner exchange may take place before spring

A new prisoner exchange may take place before the end of February this year.

Ukraine’s representative in Trilateral Contact Group Leonid Kuchma said this to journalists, Channel 5 reports.

"Negotiations are not very active. You know, it depends on many factors, and the most important factor is the position of the Russian side. If Russia says ‘yes’, the exchange will take place. I think that the next exchange will happen before March," he said.

Kuchma believes that Vladimir Putin will use the release of Ukrainian prisoners to his own benefit on the eve of the presidential election in Russia.

"The report [the “Kremlin Report”] also affects this process. Well, it also seems to me that such a humane act would be useful for the president of the Russian Federation on the eve of the election," Kuchma said.

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