Photo: ZN
Ahead of Easter on April 11, Ukraine and Russia carried out a mutual prisoner exchange, resulting in the return of 175 Ukrainian defenders and seven Ukrainian civilians, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
According to him, those released include members of the National Guard of Ukraine, the State Border Guard Service, and the Armed Forces of Ukraine who defended the country across multiple fronts, including the Kursk, Donetsk, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kyiv, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions, as well as those involved in the defense of Mariupol and the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.
Zelenskyy noted that most of the servicemen had been held in Russian captivity since 2022, and that some of the released individuals were wounded.
He added that earlier in March, Head of the Presidential Office Kyrylo Budanov had stated that a major prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia could take place around Easter, and later indicated that such an exchange might occur just before or after the holiday. Russian officials also confirmed preparations for the swap.
