UPDATE - Russia, Ukraine swap 300 prisoners of war

ADDS REMARKS FROM UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY ON PRISONER SWAP

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Russia and Ukraine on Monday swapped 300 prisoners of war, the Russian Defense Ministry announced.

A statement by the ministry said that 150 Russian servicemen have been returned by Kyiv, and all of them are being provided with psychological and medical assistance in neighboring Belarus.

The statement further said that all of the servicemen transferred by Ukraine will be transported to Russia for treatment and rehabilitation.

Indicating that 150 Ukrainian personnel were returned in exchange, the statement also said that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) mediated the exchange.

In a later statement on X, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that 189 Ukrainians, including two civilians, had returned following a prisoner exchange.

"We continue working to free every single person from Russian captivity. This is our goal, and we will not forget anyone. I thank the team that is doing everything to bring our people home. I also thank all our partners, including the UAE, who are helping us with this," he added.

Moscow and Kyiv have carried out almost 60 prisoner exchanges since the Russia-Ukraine war began on Feb. 24, 2022.

The last exchange between Moscow and Kyiv took place in mid-October when the two countries swapped 95 prisoners of war each.

Last month, both Russia and Ukraine accused each other of slowing down prisoner exchanges.

Russia’s ombudswoman Tatyana Moskalkova said earlier this month that Moscow is negotiating a “large exchange” of prisoners with Ukraine, but it has not yet reached a deal on the issue with Kyiv.