189 Ukrainian Citizens Returned from Russian Captivity

The eleventh prisoner exchange in 2024 took place between Ukraine and Russia, as part of which 189 Ukrainian citizens returned home.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi announced this.

“The return of our people from Russian captivity is always very good news for each of us. And today is one of those days: our team managed to bring 189 Ukrainians home,” the President said.

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said that 87 servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (17 of them are the soldiers of the Territorial Defence Force), 43 servicemen of the National Guard of Ukraine, 33 border guards and 24 servicemen of the Ukrainian Navy have returned from captivity.

Among them, 173 are privates and sergeants, and 14 are officers. In addition, 2 civilians returned from captivity.

The released soldiers defended Ukraine in Mariupol, on Zmiinyi Island, in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson directions, and the soldiers of the National Guard served to protect the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

Ukraine also returned those who were captured in the Kursk region.

Many Ukrainian citizens have reportedly been held in Russian captivity for more than two and a half years.

The defenders suffer from acute chronic illnesses, the consequences of mine-blast injuries, and severe wounds.

The United Arab Emirates acted as a mediator in the exchange of prisoners.

“Unfortunately, many Ukrainian citizens, both military and civilians, continue to be held in Russian captivity. The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War is doing everything possible to continue negotiations and release our people from captivity. We remember each and every one of them,” the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War emphasizes.

The previous exchange of prisoners

The previous exchange took place on October 19, when Ukraine returned 95 Ukrainians from captivity, including 48 “convicted” by the Russian invaders.

Among those released were 69 soldiers and sergeants and 26 officers. The peculiarity of this exchange was the return of a large number of Ukrainians who had received so-called “sentences” from the aggressor country’s judicial system.

In particular, 28 people were “sentenced” to long terms, and 20 to life imprisonment.