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In the first prisoner exchange since the crash of a Russian military transport plane last week, which Moscow claims was carrying 65 Ukrainian soldiers, Russia and Ukraine have exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war.
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, each side received 195 soldiers back, and its soldiers will be transported to Moscow for psychological and medical care.
After negotiations, on January 31, 195 Russian servicemen who were being held captive and in grave danger were released from the Kyiv regime’s territory. In exchange, precisely 195 detainees from the Ukrainian military forces were turned over, according to a statement from the Defense Ministry.
The state news agency RIA reported it, claiming that the United Arab Emirates had assisted in arranging the transaction.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, stated on his official X account that it was one of the largest swaps to yet.
For the number of Ukrainians who were returned, he provided a marginally larger figure. “Our people have returned.” There were 207 of them. Zelenskyy stated, “We always bring them back to their homes.”
This was the 50th prisoner exchange of its kind, according to the Ukrainian government agency in charge of POWs. It brought soldiers who had been captured by Russia on Snake Island in the Black Sea, as well as those engaged in the defense of the cities of Mariupol and Kherson, home.
The United Arab Emirates was involved in the deal’s brokering, according to a citation by the official news agency RIA.
It was one of the largest swaps to date, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who made the announcement on his official X account.
When asked how many Ukrainians were returned, he cited a significantly higher figure. “The return of our people.” 207 of them. Zelenskyy remarked, “We always get them back home.
This is the 50th exchange of prisoners of this kind, according to the Ukrainian government department responsible for POWs. It brought back to their homes soldiers who had defended the city of Mariupol and Kherson as well as soldiers Russia had taken prisoner on Snake Island in the Black Sea.
According to the organization, among those handed back were battlefield doctors and marines, and 36 of the Ukrainians who were brought back had significant illnesses or injuries.rational handling.
Since the start of the war almost two years ago, the two nations have periodically exchanged prisoners through middlemen, even though there haven’t been any peace negotiations between them since the early stages of the fight.
The largest and most recent exchange took place on January 3 when the UAE mediated the sale of 478 detainees.
Moscow reported that when Kyiv’s forces shot down the jet carrying Ukrainian soldiers to a planned exchange, the soldiers perished. While Kiev hasn’t explicitly refuted Moscow’s account of events, it has questioned whether or not captured Ukrainian soldiers were present.
On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin alleged that the military transport jet was shot down with a Patriot missile manufactured in the United States.“The plane was shot down, it has already been established for certain, by an American Patriot system,” Putin said in a televised appearance.
