Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said he hoped the escalation between Israel and Iran would not result in a drop in military aid to Kyiv, according to remarks published on Saturday.
鈥榃e would like to see aid to Ukraine not decrease because of this,鈥� he said. 鈥楲ast time, this was a factor that slowed down aid to Ukraine.鈥�
Israel unleashed large-scale attacks on Iran Friday, targeting nuclear and military facilities as well as high-ranking generals and atomic scientists, sparking international calls to restraint as fears of broader conflict grow.
The attack on Iran sparked a rise in oil prices, which Zelensky said would benefit Russia.
鈥楾he attacks led to a sharp rise in oil prices. This is bad for us,鈥� he added, reiterating a call to introduce price caps on Russian oil exports.
He added that hoped to raise the issue of price caps at a potential meeting with the US president Donald Trump in the near future.
However, the Israeli strikes might be favourable for Kyiv as well, if they lead to a reduction of military equipment supplies from Tehran to Moscow, which has relied heavily on Iranian-made attack drones.
The Ukrainian leader also warned that Europe鈥檚 support was stalling without Washington鈥檚 engagement, as 鈥楨urope has not yet decided for itself what it will do with Ukraine if America is not there鈥�.
He also urged the United States to 鈥榮hift tone鈥� in its dialogue with Russia, warning that it was 鈥榯oo warm鈥� now and that this would not help to end the war.
Meanwhile, Ukraine and Russia conducted another POW swap 鈥� the fourth one in a week 鈥� the warring sides said on Saturday, under agreements reached in Istanbul earlier this month.
鈥榃e continue to take our people out of Russian captivity. This is the fourth exchange in a week,鈥� Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on social media.
鈥業n accordance with the Russian-Ukrainian agreements another group of Russian servicemen was returned from the territory controlled by the Kyiv regime,鈥� Russia鈥檚 defence ministry said on Telegram.
Kyiv also said it had received another batch of 1,200 unidentified 聽bodies from Russia, which it said Russia claimed 鈥榖elong to Ukrainian citizens, including military personnel,鈥� as part of the Istanbul agreements as well.
Ukraine did not say whether it returned any bodies to Russia.
Photos published by Zelensky on Telegram showed men of various ages, mostly with shaved heads, wearing camouflage and draped in Ukrainian flags.
Some were injured, others disembarked from buses and hugged those welcoming them, or were seen calling someone by phone, sometimes covering their faces or smiling.
Moscow鈥檚 defence ministry released its own video showing men in uniforms holding Russian flags, clapping and chanting 鈥楻ussia, Russia鈥�, 鈥榞lory to Russia鈥� and 鈥榟ooray鈥�, some raising their fists in the air.
The exchange came as Russia repeatedly rejected ceasefire calls and intensified its offensive along the front line, and especially in the northeastern Sumy region, where it seeks to establish a 鈥榖uffer zone鈥� to protect its Kursk region, previously partly occupied by Ukraine.
Zelensky claimed Russia鈥檚 advance on Sumy was stopped, adding that Kyiv鈥檚 forces have managed to retake one village.
According to the Ukrainian president, Russia was using 53,000 men in the Sumy operation.
