Earlier in the day, Russian presidential aide and head of the Russian delegation to the talks with Ukraine Vladimir Medinsky said that the Russian and Ukrainian delegations had agreed to hold a large-scale 1,000 for 1,000 prisoner exchange at talks in Istanbul.
"The Russian side has agreed to make an exchange of 1,000 people. In the near future, starting from today, we will process the lists of those persons who will return to their homeland," Skibitskyi told reporters following the talks in Istanbul.