MOSCOW. Dec 26 (Interfax) - Kyiv and Donbas will exchange captives near Horlivka on Sunday, an informed source told Interfax.
"The exchange has been scheduled tentatively for December 29 at the Mayorsk checkpoint on the line of contact near Horlivka," the source said.
A source from the group in charge of organizing the negotiations in Minsk told Interfax that the parties planned to exchange just over 200 captives.
"Following a video conference, the parties agreed on a flexible exchange formula. This is a compromise option, as the procedure could not have been delayed any longer for such technical reasons. The parties had to implement the Normandy-format summit's decision. As to why the parties could not reach a consensus on a clear-cut formula for so long, the reason is that some prisoners on both sides refuse to be swapped," the source said.
"Some inaccuracies were committed in compiling the exchange lists," it said.
"For instance, people born in Kyiv and convicted in Ukraine for abuse of office were included in the lists. They are among those who refused to be swapped," the source said.
Hence, after starting the exchange procedure, all prisoners who can potentially be swapped will have to be interviewed on December 27-28 to receive either their consent or refusal to be exchanged.
"Then, a final formula will be worded. However, as long as most of the people involved in the exchange have not yet been verified, it can be assumed that the exchange of just over 200 people will be achieved in all," the source said.
The parties earlier planned for some 300 people to be swapped.