Russia and Ukraine have swapped 270 prisoners of war each, Russian state media reports
Most of the returnees had been held since 2022, and five were once believed dead after the Olenivka prison attack, Zelensky said.
- Russia and Ukraine exchanged 270 prisoners of war each on Friday, with President Volodymyr Zelensky confirming Ukraine recovered military personnel and nine civilians. The Defence Ministry reported freed Russian servicemen are receiving assistance in Belarus.
- Among the returnees were five prisoners previously thought dead during Russia's July 2022 attack on the Olenivka prison in Donetsk, including defenders of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol.
- According to the Khochu Nayti project, 56% of the returnees—150 people—were located by relatives. The project found 43% had been held one to two years in captivity, while 17% spent over two years.
- Following public pressure, Russian authorities included personnel from the so-called LDNR in Friday's exchange. Among them were Dmitry Ryabtsev and Sergey Kharitonov, held in captivity for more than four years.
- Since February 2022, prisoner exchanges have served as one of the few areas where Moscow and Kyiv have maintained on-off contacts despite thousands of prisoners exchanged during the full-scale war.
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Soldiers and civilians returned, many believed to have died in Russian prisons.
Russia and Ukraine held another exchange of prisoners of war on Friday, involving 270 people on each side, announced Moscow, before the resumption of negotiations scheduled for November, according to AFP, quoted by Agerpres.
Kiev, 23 Oct (EFE).- The Ukrainian government celebrated this Friday the exchange of prisoners of war with Russia which allowed the release of 270 Ukrainians, most of whom have been held since 2022 and which also include nine civilian prisoners. https://holanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/rss-efe695da76b-1b39-418b-9e52-dfd51f756292-hd-web.mp4 "Most of those released are warriors who defended Ukraine in Mariupol. Defenders also return from Do…
270 prisoners have been released on each side, which is the largest exchange in recent months and has taken place in Belarusian territory.
On Friday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates announced the success of its new mediation efforts between Russia and Ukraine to exchange prisoners between the two countries, covering 270 prisoners from each side, totalling 540 prisoners.
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