Ukraine and Russia exchanged prisoners before Easter.

Ukraine and Russia conducted an Easter prisoner exchange, during which 175 military personnel and seven civilians were returned home. The exchange took place with the assistance of the USA and the United Arab Emirates.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that among the released Ukrainians are military personnel of various ranks who defended the country in various directions, including Mariupol, Chernobyl, and other regions. According to him, most of them had been in captivity since 2022.

Russia received a similar number of its prisoners of war, according to a report by the Russian Ministry of Defense. The exchange was organized by the USA and the UAE, who had previously acted as mediators in peace negotiations between Ukraine, Russia, and the USA.

The head of the President’s Office Kyrylo Budanov noted that among the released were 25 officers, whose release was a challenging task. He added that the Coordination Staff achieved a successful result.

Representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate Andriy Yusov reported on preparations for the next exchanges planned for the near future. He noted that this is only the beginning of the Easter exchanges, but Russia rejected some of Kyiv’s humanitarian initiatives.

Commander of the 1st Corps of the National Guard of Ukraine “Azov” Denys Prokopenko clarified that among the released were also 12 prisoners from the corps, including fighters from the “Azov” and “Kara-Dag” brigades. Previous exchanges took place at the beginning of March when 500 military personnel and two civilians were freed.