There are a lot of unknowns with the prisoner exchange
The information that emerged in Kyiv last night about an upcoming prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine has not yet been officially confirmed. Journalists are on duty at Kyiv airports.
“The editor-in-chief of Ekho Moskvy, Alexey Venediktov, said that the plane with the Ukrainians was supposed to arrive in Kyiv at 5 am. At the moment, there is no official information about the whereabouts of the liberated Ukrainians. Dozens of journalists and relatives are waiting for a plane with political prisoners and prisoners at Kiev airport. Secretary of the Security Council Alexander Danilyuk was also seen there,” said former Rada deputy Mustafa Nayem.
Meanwhile, the Kommersant newspaper writes about the legal difficulties that accompany the exchange process - for example, the Ukrainian Navy crew members who participated in the provocation in the Kerch Strait have not yet been convicted, and therefore “pardon is impossible.”
The publication's source suggested that "the sailors will be sent to Ukraine along with their criminal case for further investigation."
“There, based on the results of the investigation, he noted, they may come to the conclusion of their innocence and release, but this will no longer be the actions of the Russian investigation, which is being conducted by the FSB, but of the SBU or the prosecutor’s office of Ukraine,” the newspaper writes.
“Director” Oleg Sentsov also refused to ask for pardon, saying that an appeal to Vladimir Putin would be an automatic admission of guilt.
“Several appeals for pardon were received from the director’s relatives and lawyers, but they were not granted, having been declared illegal. If Mr. Sentsov does not change his mind, the participants in the exchange can use a compromise option, for example, by sending him to Ukraine to serve the sentence imposed by the Russian court,” writes Kommersant.
English version :: Read in English There are many unclear aspects to the prisoner exchange