Russia swaps prisoners with Ukraine — RT Russia and the former Soviet Union

A total of 20 Russian servicemen have been fired from kyiv-controlled territory, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

It was « a result of the negotiation process on the exchange, » explain the soldiers.

« All released soldiers receive the necessary psychological and medical assistance », the ministry said, adding that they would soon be delivered to “medical treatment and rehabilitation facilities”.

Meanwhile, kyiv has confirmed the latest prisoner swap, saying its soldiers were freed on Thursday.

« Our people are returning home… 20 people have been released from captivity, » wrote the chief of staff of the Ukrainian president, Andrey Yermak, on his Telegram channel. Among them, “14 soldiers from the Armed Forces, [four] territorial defense fighters, a national guard officer and a navy soldier,” he added.

In a previous exchange, which took place at the end of September, 55 Russian and Donbass soldiers were released. Denis Pushilin, then head of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), said kyiv had released Ukrainian opposition leader Viktor Medvedchuk as part of the swap. Ukrainian authorities accused Medvedchuk of treason last year and banned his party, Opposition Platform – For Life, after Moscow launched its military operation in Ukraine.

According to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, 215 Ukrainian soldiers were sent back to their home country during the exchange. They included more than 100 members of the Azov Battalion, in whose ranks the fighters openly embrace nationalist and neo-Nazi views.

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