The second round of Russia–Ukraine talks in Istanbul has ended. They were conducted in Russian and lasted over an hour

The second round of direct talks between Russia and Ukraine has concluded in Istanbul’s Çırağan Palace. The meeting lasted just over an hour, and the negotiations themselves were conducted in Russian.

During the meeting, the delegations discussed prisoner exchanges. Particular attention was given to the return of young people and the transport of the bodies of fallen soldiers.

“Russia and Ukraine discussed prisoner exchanges in detail; the results will be officially announced,” representatives of the Russian delegation said after the meeting. Ukrainian delegation members confirmed that Kyiv and Moscow had reached an agreement on exchanging all seriously ill prisoners and individuals under the age of 25.

The Russian delegation was led by the presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky. The Ukrainian side was represented by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. In addition, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and the head of Turkey’s national intelligence agency, İbrahim Kalın, also participated in the negotiations.

After the meeting, Vladimir Medinsky, head of the Russian delegation in Istanbul, spoke to the press. Answering journalists’ questions, he outlined the topics discussed during the meeting, reported a correspondent from RIA Novosti.

Medinsky said that Kyiv had been handed a memorandum on conflict resolution. According to him, the document consists of two parts. He also announced that Moscow had agreed to the unilateral handover of six thousand bodies of Ukrainian soldiers to Kyiv next week.

The politician noted that the negotiations succeeded in arranging the largest prisoner exchange yet. The sick and severely wounded would be exchanged on an “all for all” basis. He clarified that after the meeting, Kyiv and Moscow would form a commission to carry out the exchange of severely wounded soldiers without political interference. Medinsky emphasized that Russia also made Ukraine a “specific proposal” to observe a two- to three-day ceasefire in some frontline areas to allow commanders to recover the bodies of their fallen comrades.

A third round of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine will take place, a source in the Russian delegation in Istanbul told TASS.

“There will be a third round. In due course,” the source said.

The head of the Ukrainian delegation, Rustem Umerov, also stated that Kyiv had proposed holding another meeting with the Russian side by the end of June. He added that during the recent session, the parties were unable to agree on an unconditional ceasefire or a meeting between the heads of state.

Russia has also commented on the possibility of holding another round of talks to resolve the conflict. Svetlana Zhurova, the first deputy chair of the State Duma’s Committee on International Affairs, noted that the information about the already planned third round indicates that some agreements have been reached between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations.

“One round won’t be enough here, nor will two or three. So if they’re going forward, that’s already good. It means some agreements are being reached,” said Svetlana Zhurova.

She added that it’s worth waiting for the final date of the next meeting, as well as learning about the topics that will be discussed there.