Russia and Ukraine exchanged 25 prisoners of war each at the Belarusian-Ukrainian border. 'Currently, all Russian servicemen are on the territory of the Republic of Belarus, where they are receiving necessary psychological and medical assistance, as well as the opportunity to contact their relatives,' the Ministry of Defense said in a statement published on its Telegram channel.
'Today, 25 more of our people are returning home to Ukraine. These are our military and civilians. Among them are defenders of Mariupol and 'Azovstal', as well as our Kharkiv region, Donetsk region, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson region. The guys have severe injuries and illnesses. Each of them will receive all necessary medical assistance,' wrote Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The last and largest prisoner exchange of the previous year, which was publicly reported, took place on the Ukraine-Belarus border with UAE mediation on December 30. The Russian Ministry of Defense then announced an exchange under the '150 for 150' formula. The Ukrainian side reported 189 returned Ukrainian servicemen.
The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the total number of prisoners exchanged with UAE mediation exceeds two thousand people.
Photo: TG Volodymyr Zelensky