More than 200 of our soldiers and civilians were returned from Russian captivity.
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Soldiers, sergeants, officers. Soldiers of the Armed Forces, National Guard, Navy, border guards. Some of the defenders defended Mariupol and Azovstal,” Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky wrote on January 3.
Let us remember that large prisoner exchanges have not occurred since August 2023.
This is the largest exchange of prisoners of war during the full-scale invasion. 230 defenders are returning home. Among them:
- representatives of the Armed Forces of Ukraine – 130 (TrO – 14, Navy – 14);
- National Guard – 55;
- State Border Service – 38;
- National Police – 1;
- six civilians who were illegally imprisoned.
The majority of those fired were men (225), five were women. There are 213 privates and sergeants, eleven are officers, I inform the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.
What a joy it is to announce that today, January 3, the good news will spread throughout Ukraine, because defenders who have been in enemy captivity for a long time are returning home. These are the defenders of the city of Mariupol, Zmeiny Island… There are defenders who were at the Azovstal plant. These are soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, State National Guard Service, territorial defense…
2024 marked the start of the 49th exchange. And now there are already 2828 home defenders! Congratulations to the defenders of the Motherland! Next, they will undergo a medical examination, assistance with the restoration of documents, cards, and rehabilitation,” Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmitry Lubinets wrote on Facebook.
Exchanges of prisoners of war with Russia continue, and often this does not happen publicly, but sometimes right on the battlefield, Vladimir Zelensky told AP in December 2023.
We are changing. We are filling our exchange fund [росіянами], and then exchanges occur. Very often we exchange prisoners of war not so loudly, not so publicly. I’ll be honest – we change them right on the battlefield. When we have 10 of their prisoners, and they have several of our guys, we change them. There are exchanges, and not only global ones, but also directly on the spot. The commanders have instructions for all this, and they know what to do,” the president said in an interview with the Associated Press.
He clarified that over the past six months, Ukraine has returned about 100 military personnel from captivity, and since the beginning of the full-scale invasion – several thousand. Several thousand more are still in captivity.
On January 3, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the return of 248 military personnel from “Ukrainian captivity.”
A post appeared on the official account of the Russian Ministry of Defense, which said that “as a result of a complex negotiation process on the territory controlled by the Kyiv regime, 248 Russian military personnel were returned.”
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.