Russia and Ukraine have exchanged 372 prisoners of war, including nearly two dozen severely wounded Ukrainian soldiers, officials from both Moscow and Kyiv confirmed today.
The swap was announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday night, with each side agreeing to release 175 prisoners. Additionally, Russia pledged to return 23 wounded Ukrainian soldiers as a “goodwill gesture.” However, Russia’s Defense Ministry later stated that only 22 injured soldiers were released, without explaining the discrepancy.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the exchange, sharing images of returning servicemen, some on crutches, wrapped in Ukrainian flags. He noted that those freed included members of Ukraine’s military, territorial defense forces, and border guards who had fought across multiple regions, including southern, eastern, and northeastern Ukraine, as well as Russia’s Kursk region.
Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, said the 197-for-175 prisoner swap brought the total number of Ukrainian soldiers repatriated since the full-scale invasion began to more than 4,300.
Russia’s military credited the United Arab Emirates, which has previously mediated prisoner exchanges between the two countries, for facilitating the latest swap. Russian soldiers released in the exchange were undergoing psychological and medical evaluations in Belarus before being transferred to Russia for treatment and rehabilitation.
The exchange came just hours after Putin, following talks with former U.S. President Donald Trump, agreed to a 30-day suspension of attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
Zelensky welcomed the temporary ceasefire but criticized Putin for rejecting a broader U.S.-proposed peace deal, arguing that the Russian leader remained intent on weakening Ukraine.
Meanwhile, tensions persisted as Russia’s Defense Ministry accused Ukraine of violating the truce by launching a drone strike on an oil depot in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region overnight.
