Ukraine secures freedom for 197 in major prisoner swap
"Today is another day when Ukraine brings its people back. 175 of our defenders have been released from Russian captivity. Another 22 defenders are returning home through measures beyond exchanges. Among them are severely wounded warriors and those whom Russia persecuted for fabricated crimes," Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Wednesday.
"All of them will immediately receive the necessary medical and psychological assistance," the Ukrainian president conveyed on social media.
"This is one of the largest POW exchanges. Returning home are our soldiers, sergeants, and officers – warriors who fought for our freedom in the ranks of the Armed Forces, Navy, National Guard, Territorial Defense Forces, and Border Guard Service. They defended Ukraine across various fronts – in Mariupol, at Azovstal, in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, as well as Kharkiv, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, and Kursk regions," he emphasized.
"I thank our team for their important work in finding Ukrainian prisoners of war and facilitating exchanges, as well as for the results that bring hope. We are also grateful to all our partners, especially the United Arab Emirates, for making today’s exchange possible," Zelensky noted.
"Ukraine remembers every one of our heroes, and we will bring all our people home," he assured.
Trump on the prisoner exchange
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced that a prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine was set to occur following discussions with Vladimir Putin. The exchange had already been confirmed earlier.
The previous prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine occurred in February. It involved 150 people from each side.
According to data from the Coordination Headquarters for POWs in Kyiv, since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine has conducted 61 prisoner exchanges, thanks to which 4,131 citizens have returned to their homeland. Additionally, over 7,000 bodies of fallen military personnel have been recovered. These figures do not include Wednesday's exchange.
