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KYIV, Ukraine -- Ukraine’s president said that Russia repatriated astatine slightest 20 of its ain dormant soldiers successful caller exchanges with Ukraine, describing it arsenic a effect of Moscow's disorganization successful carrying retired ample swaps of wounded POWs and remains of troops.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that an Israeli national was among the dormant Ukraine had received successful caller exchanges. He spoke to journalists connected Friday but his comments were embargoed until Saturday. Officials did not disclose the identities of the bodies.
“They threw the corpses of their citizens astatine us. This is their cognition toward war, toward their soldiers. And this is already documented. Sometimes these bodies adjacent person Russian passports,” helium said.
He said the Russian broadside insisted the dormant were each Ukrainians.
Journalists were shown a Russian passport and ID belonging to 1 of the 20 dormant Russians. According to the document, the antheral came from the Moscow region.
The exchanges of the dormant and wounded soldiers are the lone tangible effect of nonstop bid talks successful Istanbul. In June, Ukraine and Russia agreed to exchange the bodies of fallen soldiers successful a 6,000-for-6,000 format during the 2nd circular of negotiations. Ukraine was acrophobic that the fig was excessively precocious and that the sides did not person capable clip for forensic examinations and checking the identities of the dead.
Zelenskyy said helium suspected Russia’s program was to play on with bid talks to appease the U.S. and stave disconnected much sanctions but without ending the warfare that Russian President Vladimir Putin believes helium is winning.
He said that due to the fact that of this, Ukraine would beryllium “in a truly hard situation” of deciding whether to proceed the talks successful Istanbul.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine was against Iran acquiring atomic weapons, due to the fact that of its subject concern with Russia, but stopped abbreviated of expressing explicit enactment for Israel's strikes. He repeated that the caller warfare successful the Middle East volition impact Ukraine indirectly.
“Iran gave the Russians everything to termination us. They gave them martyrs, they gave them missiles, and they gave them licenses. The information that their accumulation capacities person present go weaker is (a) affirmative for us. But astatine definite points it whitethorn already beryllium excessively late,” helium said, besides citing Russia's subject practice with North Korea.
Russia has modified Iran-made Shahed drones and has utilized them, often hundreds astatine a time, successful barrages targeting Ukraine.
Zelenskyy said 39 Russian companies were progressive successful the accumulation of Oreshnik, an intermediate-range ballistic rocket susceptible of carrying a atomic warhead. He said 21 of them are not nether sanctions. “And truthful it is perfectly incomprehensible wherefore sanctions should not beryllium imposed urgently,” helium said.
Russia attacked Ukraine with the rocket successful November, marking a superior escalation successful the warfare and Russia's capabilities.
Zelenskyy dispelled reports that Patriots aerial defence systems were destroyed successful caller Russian drone and rocket barrages. He besides said Ukraine has started utilizing domestically produced interceptors to sprout down Shahed drones and is seeking financing from Germany to ramp up the weapon's production.
He added helium sent signals to Western partners asking them to springiness up 0.25% of their GDP to enactment Ukraine's section defence industry.
Zelenskyy said it's apt helium would be a NATO acme aboriginal this week, but that helium would marque a last determination connected Monday.
Though Zelenskyy did not conscionable Trump who had near aboriginal the Group of Seven acme successful Canada past week, Ukraine's Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and the caput of the president's office, Andriy Yermak, gave U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent a database of weapons Ukraine is hoping to purchase. “We volition hold feedback,” Zelenskyy said, adding the bundle of weapons included Patriot systems.
The weapons bundle would beryllium among the topics Zelenskyy plans to sermon with Trump successful their adjacent meeting, helium added, arsenic good arsenic the contented of sanctions.
“Frankly, it seems to maine that we request to speech astir a caller enactment successful the diplomatic track,” helium said. “We request greater certainty and greater unit from the satellite connected Putin.”
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Follow AP’s sum of the warfare successful Ukraine astatine https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
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