You're reading: Poroshenko says Russia unwilling to discuss release of political prisoners

While representatives of Ukraine have been continuously raising the issue of releasing political prisoners from Ukraine that have been illegitimately held in prisons in Russia and Russia-occupied territories, Russia has demonstrated its unwillingness to discuss this issue, President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine has said.

“The Russian party has demonstrated it is not ready to discuss [it], even though the Ukrainian party, in fact, raises this issue almost every day… Now the entire world has witnessed whose hands are holding the key to releasing the Ukrainian political prisoners and Ukrainian prisoners of war and whose hands have got the key to peace between Russia and Ukraine. I think you all know the name of that person,” Poroshenko told a press conference in Kyiv on December 16.