Ukrainian defense ministry announces key update on prisoner exchange with Russia

Since the start of Russia's invasion, Ukraine has managed to bring home more than 5,000 people from captivity. Preparations for the next operations are already underway.

This was reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing Andrii Yusov, a representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, speaking on a telethon.

According to him, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, over 5,000 Ukrainians have been returned home through exchanges, and more than 500 citizens have been released outside of exchanges, with 63 exchanges being separate operations.

"I can say that preparations for the next operations to bring our people home are already underway," he said.

Yusov added that the exchange on April 19 was one of the largest prisoner swaps since the start of the full-scale invasion.

"This exchange was prepared for a long time. I can say that the timing was postponed several times. But Easter was an additional factor in making this exchange happen," Yusov noted.

Easter prisoner swap: Ukraine returns 277 defenders

On April 19, just before Easter, a large-scale prisoner exchange took place between Ukraine and Russia. A total of 277 Ukrainian defenders were freed from Russian captivity.

Among those released were servicemen from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard, the State Special Transport Service, and the Border Guard Service. They defended Mariupol, Donetsk, and other hot spots.

This was the second exchange in the last month: the previous one took place on March 19, when 175 Ukrainians returned home, with another 22 freed outside the framework of the exchange through repatriation measures.