Russia and Ukraine conducted a significant exchange of prisoners of war on Saturday, with each side returning 115 soldiers to their respective countries. This exchange occurred just over two weeks after Ukraine launched a surprise incursion into Russia’s Kursk region and coincided with Ukraine’s Independence Day.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the return of the Ukrainian soldiers, stating, “Another 115 of our defenders have returned home today. These are soldiers of the National Guard, the Armed Forces, the Navy, the State Border Guard Service.” Zelensky shared images of the released men draped in Ukrainian flags.
Kyiv reported that it had taken hundreds of Russian soldiers captive during the incursion into Kursk, which began on August 6.
Moscow confirmed the exchange, with the Russian Defense Ministry stating, “As a result of a negotiation process, 115 Russian servicemen taken prisoner in the Kursk region have been returned from territories controlled by the Kyiv regime.” The ministry also noted that the soldiers were currently in neighboring Belarus, where they are receiving “psychological-medical help” before being brought back to Russia. Images released by the Russian side showed the soldiers near buses in a field.
Both countries expressed gratitude to the United Arab Emirates, which played a key role in mediating the swap. The UAE stated that it had “successfully mediated a new captives exchange between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Ukraine.”
This exchange is the latest in a series of prisoner swaps that have taken place throughout the ongoing war, which has lasted more than two years.
