Prisoner exchange before the New Year: it became known who was managed to be returned from captivity.

Return of 189 Ukrainians from captivity

On the eve of the New Year, 189 Ukrainians were returned from captivity. This is one of the largest exchanges since the invasion. This was reported by the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

In total, 3956 people have already been freed from Russian captivity, of which 1358 were in 2024. This Time, the following were released:

• 87 servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (of which 17 are from the Territorial Defense Forces),
• 43 from the National Guard,
• 33 from the State Border Guard Service,
• 24 from the Navy.
• two civilians.

“Many citizens of Ukraine have been in Russian captivity for over two and a half years. Defenders have exacerbated chronic diseases, consequences of mine-explosive injuries, and serious wounds. This time, 173 privates and sergeants and 14 officers were released,” the message states.

In addition to Mariupol and Snake Island, those released defended Ukraine in the directions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, while the National Guardsmen were on duty guarding the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. It was also possible to return those who were captured in the Kursk region.

The largest return of defenders home occurred on January 3 of this year. That day, the Coordination Headquarters was able to bring home 230 people.

It should be noted that Ukraine returned 189 Ukrainians from Russian captivity home. As noted by the head of Ukraine, military personnel were returned from captivity - defenders of “Azovstal” and Mariupol, Chernobyl, Snake Island, from various fronts. Among them are soldiers, sergeants, and officers. This includes National Guardsmen, including Azov fighters, border guards, territorial defense fighters, and soldiers of the Navy and Armed Forces. Additionally, two civilians who were captured in Mariupol were returned.

According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine conducts exchanges of Russian military personnel for Ukrainian military personnel, and there are also procedures and mechanisms for returning civilians, but the return of Ukrainian children is currently a very difficult issue. They cannot be exchanged because Ukraine does not abduct Russian children.

Earlier, the Human Rights Commissioner in the Russian Federation, Tatyana Moskalkova, published a named list of 630 Ukrainian prisoners of war who, according to her, have been in Russian captivity for more than a year. Moskalkova claims that Ukraine allegedly “delays” the process of exchanging prisoners.

It is worth noting that Russia and Ukraine exchanged parcels and letters for prisoners of war. Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets reported that it was possible to send 1500 packages with warm clothes and other necessary items for Ukrainian prisoners.