MOSCOW: The president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Mirjana Spoljaric, plans to visit Moscow by the end of the year and hopes to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the head of the ICRC Regional Delegation for Russia, Boris Michel, told Sputnik.
“Of course, she [Spoljaric] is planning to visit Moscow again. I hope it will be before the end of this year, and I hope she can meet with the president of Russia, as she did last week with the president of China,“ Michel said in an interview.
On the Ukraine conflict, Michel said the ICRC is currently not involved in prisoner exchanges between Russia and Ukraine but is ready to mediate if the parties request it.
The ICRC would like to increase the number of visits to Russian and Ukrainian prisoners of war, and the organization’s representatives have already visited 1,800 POWs on both sides of the conflict, Michel added.
“Ideally, the ICRC would like to increase the number of visits wherever the prisoners of war are being held, whether it is in Ukraine, or in Russia, and this is the work we will continue to do with a lot of energy,“ he said.
On the grain deal issue, Michel said the Red Cross was monitoring the situation and would welcome any initiative that would help people facing food insecurity. -Bernama-Sputnik
