CHERNIHIV REGION, Ukraine: In what is anticipated to be the largest prisoner exchange of the conflict to date, Russia and Ukraine each freed 390 inmates on Friday and promised to release more in the days ahead.
After the warring parties disagreed on a ceasefire during their first direct discussions in almost three years, last week’s agreement to exchange 1,000 detainees each was the first tangible step towards peace. With more scheduled to be freed on Saturday and Sunday, both sides said they had already released 270 military and 120 civilians.
According to the Russian Defence Ministry, the released Russians are now getting medical and psychological support in Belarus, which borders Ukraine, before being sent to Russia for additional care. Among them are citizens apprehended during a Ukrainian invasion of Russia’s Kursk area. Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine, shared pictures of freed prisoners celebrating their freedom while wearing Ukrainian flags and sporting shaved heads.
The Ukrainian media site Espreso TV released a video of a prisoner’s wife sobbing with happiness while draped in a flag at Kyiv’s Independence Square. The woman said that she had been waiting for her husband’s release since 2022 and that Ukrainian officials had just called to confirm the good news.
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