Russia, Ukraine swap 175 prisoners of war each

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Moscow and Kyiv exchanged 175 prisoners of war each on Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry announced.

According to the ministry's statement, the Russian servicemen are currently receiving psychological and medical assistance in Belarus; later, they will be transported to Russia for further treatment and rehabilitation.

The ministry highlighted the mediation efforts of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in facilitating the swap.

The ministry said that additionally, as a gesture of goodwill, 22 heavily wounded Ukrainian soldiers who had been receiving aid at Russian medical facilities were also repatriated.

In a separate statement on X, Ukrainian President Volodymyr confirmed both the exchange and the return of 22 wounded servicemen.

"All of them will immediately receive the necessary medical and psychological assistance," he said.

Zelenskyy emphasized that it was one of the largest war prisoners' exchanges and thanked the members of Ukraine's team and other partners, "especially the United Arab Emirates," for making today’s exchange possible.

The swap was announced on Tuesday by Russian President Vladimir Putin during his phone talk with his US counterpart Donald Trump. Later Zelenskyy confirmed the exchange, saying he had been informed about it earlier in the day by the Ukrainian intelligence services.