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Second round of Russia-Ukraine peace talks conclude in Istanbul

Istanbul, June 2 (UNI) The second round of the Russia-Ukraine peace talks concluded in Istanbul's Ciragan Palace on Monday after over an hour, Anadolu reported.
Russia was represented by a delegation led by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, while Ukraine's delegation was headed by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.
The Ukrainian delegation also included the foreign minister, head of intelligence, and chief of the General Staff.
Speaking in a press conference at the Vilnius Summit with B9 and Nordic countries, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the end of talks, saying he was waiting for Umerov's report.
"They (delegations) exchanged documents through the Turkish side, and we are preparing a new release of prisoners of war," he said.
Following the talks, Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine's presidential office and a member of the delegation, said on Telegram that Ukraine demanded the return of children, who, according to Kyiv were "illegally deported, forcibly relocated" to the Russia-controlled territories.
Istanbul also hosted the previous round of talks on May 16, which had resulted in the largest prisoner swap between the two countries since the start of the Moscow-Kyiv conflict, now in its fourth year.
Türkiye has maintained close ties with both Russia and Ukraine throughout the war and has repeatedly offered its mediation to facilitate dialogue and peace efforts.
Russia and Ukraine are working on a fresh prisoner exchange following talks between delegations from Kiev and Moscow in Istanbul, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov announced that Moscow and Kiev agreed to return the bodies of 6,000 fallen soldiers each, which was confirmed by the Russian delegation.
Kiev has also proposed to Moscow a new meeting for the end of this month, according to Umerov.
Moscow has agreed to exchange all heavily wounded and 18-25 year-old soldiers, Vladimir Medinski, the head of the Russian delegation at Istanbul peace talks, said.
He noted that the agreement would mark the largest-ever war prisoners exchange.
Russian and Ukrainian delegations met in Istanbul’s historic Çırağan Palace on June 2, two weeks after the first round of talks, to discuss their positions concerning the much-anticipated ceasefire to be followed by a lasting peace agreement.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan chaired the meeting along with National Intelligence Organization chief İbrahim Kalın and Chief of General Staff Gen. Metin Gürak.
In his opening statement, Fidan hailed the two sides’ participation and implementation of the decisions taken in the first round of talks as an effort to build trust between Russia and Ukraine.
Urged on by U.S. President Donald Trump, Moscow and Kiev have opened direct negotiations for the first time since the early weeks of Russia's invasion but have yet to make significant progress towards an elusive agreement.
Russia intercepted 162 Ukrainian drones overnight, the Russian defense ministry said on Monday, hours before the second round of direct talks.
"Air defense systems intercepted and destroyed 162 Ukrainian drones" between 1710 GMT and 2300 GMT on Sunday, the ministry said in a statement.
The majority of the drones were shot down over regions bordering Ukraine, with 57 intercepted over the Kursk region and 31 over the Belgorod region, it said.
Monday's talks also come a day after Ukraine carried out one of its most brazen and successful attacks ever on Russian soil — hitting dozens of strategic bombers parked at airbases thousands of kilometres behind the front line.
At the first round of talks in Istanbul last month, they agreed a large-scale prisoner exchange and to swap notes on what their vision of a peace deal might look like.
The Çırağan Palace in Istanbul is an Ottoman imperial house on the banks of the Bosphorus that is now a luxury five-star hotel.
UNI RN
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