(MENAFN) China expressed strong support on Thursday for the latest prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine, following direct negotiations held in Istanbul, Türkiye.

“We noted that Russia and Ukraine held a new round of direct talks this week and reached common understandings on humanitarian issues, including exchanging those held captive. China welcomes this,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said during a press briefing in Beijing.

The agreement, reached on Wednesday in Istanbul, paves the way for another round of prisoner-of-war exchanges between the two nations.

“On the Ukraine crisis, China’s position is consistent and clear,” Lin stated.

He emphasized that Beijing supports “all efforts conducive to peace and hopes parties will remain committed to the political settlement of the crisis and work together for de-escalation.”

Following the third round of peace negotiations, Russian delegation leader Vladimir Medinsky confirmed in a news conference in Istanbul that around 250 detainees from each side were part of the exchange.

“Currently, on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border, the final batch of prisoners of war, approximately 250 persons on each side, are being exchanged. Thus, the second unprecedented large-scale exchange of roughly 1,200 individuals has been completed,” he stated.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also confirmed the exchange, highlighting that over 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers had returned home due to this humanitarian initiative.

He noted that some of the returned soldiers had endured captivity for as long as three years. Zelenskyy added that the released personnel would receive both medical treatment and psychological support.

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