Ukraine returned more than 200 soldiers and civilians from Russian captivity. Among them are soldiers of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, the Navy, border guards, defenders of Mariupol and Zmiiny Island.
This was announced by President Volodymyr Zelenskyi and Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets.
As a result of the exchange, 230 Ukrainian soldiers were returned home. Among them, 130 are members of the Armed Forces, 55 are members of the National Guard, 38 are members of the State Border Guard Service, one is from the National Police, and six are civilians. 48 exchanged servicemen had the status of "disappeared". Next, they will undergo a medical examination, help with the restoration of documents and cards, and rehabilitation.
The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reports that it received 248 of its military personnel, and the exchange itself was allegedly facilitated by the United Arab Emirates as an intermediary. The Ukrainian side does not mention this.
- Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine has returned almost 2,600 military and civilian personnel from Russian captivity, Andriy Yusov, a representative of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, announced in August. The last exchange of prisoners of war before that took place on August 7, 2023. Then Ukraine managed to return 22 soldiers.