The situation 1163 – May 23, 2025

• Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov demanded that any future peace agreement in Ukraine include conditions to prevent the election and establishment of future pro-Western governments in Ukraine.
• Ukraine and Russia conducted a 390-for-390 prisoner-of-war (POW) and civilian exchange on May 23 as part of a larger 1,000-for-1,000 exchange agreed upon during recent bilateral negotiations in Istanbul.
• Russian forces reportedly recently executed more Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) on the battlefield.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin approved an experimental application to monitor migrants, likely in an effort to placate Russian ultranationalist demands while continuing to leverage migrants to support force generation and mitigate labor shortages.
• Ukrainian forces advanced near Toretsk, and Russian forces advanced near Novopavlivka and Kurakhove.

The full update of the Russian offensive 1163 is available on UNDERSTANDING WAR