Under the mediation of the United Arab Emirates, Russia and Ukraine conducted a prisoner exchange on Saturday (August 24), with a total of 230 prisoners exchanged, split evenly with 115 from each side.
This marks the first prisoner swap since Ukraine’s cross-border raid into the Russian Kursk region on August 6.
According to Russian state news agency citing the Russian Defense Ministry, the exchanged Russian soldiers were captured in the Kursk region. All released Russian soldiers are currently in Belarus, where they will receive medical and rehabilitation treatments upon returning to Russia.
The Russian Defense Ministry stated that 115 Russian soldiers returned from territories controlled by the Ukrainian government, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that 115 Ukrainian defenders also returned home on Saturday.
The Russian Defense Ministry expressed gratitude towards the United Arab Emirates for their role in facilitating the prisoner exchange.
The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed its role in the prisoner exchange efforts, stating that through UAE’s mediation efforts, the total number of exchanged prisoners has now reached 1,788.
This is the seventh prisoner exchange mediated by the UAE since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Ukraine indicated that one of the objectives of the attack on Russian territory in Kursk was to capture Russian soldiers for a prisoner exchange. Ukraine claims to control over a thousand square kilometers of land in the Kursk region.
President Zelensky of Ukraine mentioned that besides capturing Russian soldiers, the Kursk operation had other objectives, which he could not disclose. He stated that this operation was a preemptive strike aimed at preventing Russian attacks on the Ukrainian city of Sumy.
On Saturday, Ukraine announced that its forces had attacked a Russian ammunition depot in Voronezh in southern Russia. Ukraine also reported that five people were killed in a Russian military attack on the eastern Ukrainian town of Kostyantynivka.
Zelensky emphasized that the Ukrainian soldiers released from Russia were members of the National Guard, Armed Forces, Navy, and Border Patrol.
“We remember each and every person. We are searching and making every effort to bring everyone home,” he said, expressing gratitude for the efforts made by the United Arab Emirates.
He further stated that Ukraine would make every effort to pressure Russian President Putin to end the war through diplomatic means.