Trump rushed to announce prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia – Politico

When US President Donald Trump announced the completion of a major prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia, the first phase of the process had not even begun, Politico reported, citing an anonymous Ukrainian official.

"Kyiv kept the process highly secretive due to safety concerns for the first 270 soldiers and 120 civilians, who were about to be swapped on the border with Belarus," the publication said.

As the publication describes, on May 23 in Chernihiv, hundreds of women and children "were anxiously waiting for signs that their loved ones would soon return to them" – and then "Trump woke up in Washington."

"A major prisoners swap was just completed between Russia and Ukraine. It will go into effect shortly. Congratulations to both sides on this negotiation. This could lead to something big???" the American president wrote on his Truth Social Social network.

In fact, writes Politico, the first phase of the prisoner exchange had not even begun when the US president published his message.

According to an unnamed Ukrainian official, Trump wanted to be the first to announce the exchange.

"Fortunately, [Trump’s rushed post] did not have any effect. But we usually do not report on the ongoing exchanges, as you never know with Russians. Our boys were too close to the enemy," the source told the outlet.

At the same time, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov thanked Trump for his help in the exchange, as Kyiv is still trying to keep the American president in the peace process, Politico notes.

Earlier, on May 23, a LIGA.net interlocutor involved in the process also reported that the prisoner exchange had not yet taken place when Trump published his message.

• The 1,000-for-1,000 exchange is the only real agreement from the Istanbul talks on May 16.
• On May 23, Ukraine managed to return 270 military personnel and 120 civilians from Russian captivity. The exchange will continue this weekend – on Saturday and Sunday. Among the released are three women and 387 men. Ukraine handed over 70 collaborators to Russia as part of the exchange.
• On May 24, the second stage of a large-scale prisoner exchange with Russia took place – Ukraine managed to return home 307 people.