Russia and Ukraine Exchange Hundreds of Prisoners in Largest Swap of the War

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Facts

  • In what appears to be one of few areas where both countries can reach a compromise, Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday announced the largest exchange of prisoners since the war began. Following mediation from the United Arab Emirates, each side successfully returned more than 200 soldiers after the deal was sealed.1
  • Ukraine said it received 230 of its people, with officials saying that figure was comprised of 130 soldiers from Ukraine's Armed Forces, 55 from the National Guard, and 38 from the State Border Guard Service. It also included a police officer and six civilians that Ukrainian officials said had been illegally detained in Russia. They added that of those released, 225 were men and five were women.2
  • Meanwhile, Russia's Defense Ministry in a statement said it was able to retrieve 248 of its servicemen following negotiations it described as 'complicated.' It gave no other details of the prison swap, other than to thank the mediation efforts of the UAE.3
  • Wednesday's exchange — aside from being the biggest prisoner swap of the war — was also the first in months after previous negotiations broke down towards the latter part of last year.4
  • The last known exchange took place in August. At the time, Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s human rights investigator, said that just over 2.5K Ukrainian prisoners had so far been released. Meanwhile, an estimated 4K Ukrainians are still believed to be held captive — though accurate numbers on this or Russian prisoners of war are not readily available.1

Sources: 1Guardian, 2Ukrainska Pravda, 3TASS and 4Al Jazeera.

Narratives

  • Pro-Ukraine narrative, as provided by UKRINFORM. Ukraine was able to retrieve 230 of its soldiers as well as several civilians as a result of this prisoner swap. Kyiv is eternally grateful for all they have given to their homeland. Ukraine will always fight to bring back anyone who's illegally taken into Russian captivity.
  • Pro-Russia narrative, as provided by RT International. After months of Moscow returning prisoners of war to Ukraine, Russia was finally able to retrieve 248 of its soldiers as a result of this prisoner swap. This followed complicated negotiations, mediated by the United Arab Emirates, so they are thanked for bringing this deal to fruition.

Predictions