The Russian Defense Ministry said 248 servicemen had been released by Ukraine. Kyiv also said it had sent 230 prisoners home – 224 soldiers and six civilians – in the largest prisoner exchange of the war so far.
The UAE's foreign ministry confirmed the country's role, saying in a statement that the prisoner swap was prompted by its “strong friendship” with both Moscow and Kyiv.
A video released by the Ukrainian government shows the released prisoners, wrapped in the country's blue and yellow flag, getting off a bus, singing the national anthem and shouting "Long live Ukraine".
Most of the prisoners are healthy.
A freed prisoner shouted: “We are back! People have not forgotten us!”
The Russian Defense Ministry also posted a similar video of uniformed servicemen arriving in Belgorod on buses. One unnamed person said: “I will be home in five hours, I am so happy.”
Despite no end in sight to the 22-month-old war, Kyiv and Moscow have carried out several prisoner exchanges since the early months of Russia's special operation in Ukraine launched in February 2022.
However, the frequency of prisoner exchanges dropped sharply in 2023 and the most recent prisoner exchange was held in August 2023.
Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine's HUR military intelligence service, pointed to the UAE's “direct role”: “After a long time, we were able to carry out a prisoner exchange.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said it was “truly a great day for Ukraine” and pledged to push for more prisoner exchanges based on a growing “swap fund” of captured Russian soldiers.
“The more Russian soldiers are captured, the more effective the prisoner exchange negotiations will be.”
He said some of those who had just been released had been listed as missing.
The freed Ukrainian prisoners served in various units of the Ukrainian army and included many servicemen who took part in the three-month defense of the Azovstal steel plant in the port of Mariupol before it was seized by Russia in May 2022.
On the Russian side, a statement from the Defense Ministry said that their released prisoners will be examined and given medical treatment.
Russia's Human Rights Commissioner, Tatyana Moskalkova, thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin and the military and intelligence agencies for their efforts leading to the prisoner exchange.
Nguyen Quang Minh (according to Reuters)
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