Former SBU officer proposed exchanging convicted UOC priests for Ukrainian fighters with Russia.
Former SBU officer and ex-MP Ivan Stupak suggested in an interview with Channel 24 on August 28, 2024, that imprisoned Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) priests could be used as valuable bargaining chips for exchanges with Russia. Stupak proposed that 25 such convicted priests might serve as significant leverage for negotiating the release of Ukrainian fighters, including those from the Azov Battalion.
According to Stupak, previous exchange experiences have demonstrated that Russia places high value on retrieving its priests. For instance, he noted that in Luhansk Oblast, one UOC priest was exchanged for 47 Ukrainian captives.
“If the Russians see a need for these priests, we might start negotiations not on a 1-to-1 basis, but rather 1-to-3 or 1-to-5. This is war; we’re trying to sell the 'goods' that we don’t need but are valuable to the Russians at a higher price,” Stupak emphasized.
He also mentioned that among the prisoners in Ukraine, there is a "Russian cleric" who, according to "church canons, is equivalent to at least an FSB colonel."

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