Prisoner swap in Ukraine is a positive sign for peace

#Ukraineceasefire #Ukraine #Debaltseve #prisonerexchange #Luhansk After the announcement of cease fire in Ukraine, there have been reports of scattered violence but the exchange of government troops and pro-Russian rebels is seen to be a positive sign about the peace process as reported in news.sky.com dated 22 February 2015.
The peace agreement had been signed last week in Minsk and it envisages an exchange of all prisoners apart from cessation of hostilities.
The exchange of 139 Ukrainian soldiers and 52 rebels took place in no-man's land near the village of Zholobok, about 12 miles from Luhansk. This is a village located near the border in the country's war-torn east.
Some of the Ukrainians were on crutches and had to walk a distance of nearly two miles to a rendezvous point before the exchange was carried out. It has been observed that many of the soldiers exchanged looked to be injured and both sides accused the other of mistreating prisoners.
As understood from pro-Moscow rebels, most of the Ukrainian soldiers who have been released had been taken prisoner during fighting for the town of Debaltseve.
Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko has been informed about these exchanges.
A spokesman of the Ukrainian security has revealed that the rebels are continuing to move equipment toward the port city of Mariupol. This is a matter of concern because, the rebels could make attempts to seize the city and establish a land corridor between mainland Russia and the Crimea.