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4h ago

Russia and Ukraine Swap 146 Prisoners Each in UAE-Brokered Exchange

The swap reflects rare cooperation shaped by Istanbul protocols that prioritized freeing long-held civilians.

Warriors of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, the State Border Guard Service, and civilians. Most of them had been in captivity since 2022 along with journalist Dmytro Khyliuk (2nd from right), who was abducted in the Kyiv region in March 2022. At last, he is home, in Ukraine.
A still image from a video released by the Russian Defence Ministry shows what it said to be Russian service personnel captured by Ukrainian forces and released during the latest exchange of prisoners of war in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict, at an unknown location in Belarus, in this image taken from footage released August 24, 2025. Russian Defence Ministry/Handout via REUTERS
A still image from a video released by the Russian Defence Ministry shows what it said to be Russian service personnel captured by Ukrainian forces and released during the latest exchange of prisoners of war in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict, at an unknown location in Belarus, in this image taken from footage released August 24, 2025. Russian Defence Ministry/Handout via REUTERS
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Overview

  • Ukraine confirmed that eight civilians were released alongside service members, including journalists Dmytro Khilyuk and Mark Kaliush, medic Serhii Kovaliov, and former Kherson mayor Volodymyr Mykolayenko.
  • Russia’s Defence Ministry said 146 Russian servicemen returned and are receiving medical and psychological care in Belarus.
  • Moscow also claimed eight Russian civilians from the Kursk region were returned, a detail Kyiv has not confirmed.
  • Ukrainian authorities shared video of Khilyuk calling his mother after more than three years in incommunicado detention, underscoring concerns over civilian detentions.
  • Kyiv credited UAE mediation for the exchange, which follows Istanbul-negotiated protocols, as rights groups note dozens of Ukrainian media workers remain detained and Ukraine estimates thousands of civilians are still held in Russia.