Russia and Ukraine announced this Monday, December 30, that they had carried out a new exchange involving more than 300 prisoners, following mediation by the United Arab Emirates and on the eve of New Year’s Eve.
“On December 30, following a negotiation process, 150 Russian soldiers were repatriated from the territory controlled by the kyiv regime. In exchange, 150 prisoners of war from the Ukrainian army were handed over,” said the Russian army in a press release.
For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky assured that 189 Ukrainians had been released in total, including soldiers and two civilians, “very good news”. Russia, in its press release, only reported 150 Ukrainians exchanged.
United Arab Emirates mediation
According to the Russian army, “the United Arab Emirates provided humanitarian mediation for the return from captivity of Russian soldiers”, who “are currently in Belarus”, an ally of Moscow and neighbor of Ukraine.
The United Arab Emirates, very active in discussions on prisoner exchanges between kyiv and Moscow, also serve as mediators for the return of Ukrainian children to their country from Russia. Russian human rights ombudsman Tatiana Moskalkova praised the “courage” of the freed Russian soldiers on Telegram, during a brief exchange with them broadcast in a video on her Telegram channel. “Happy New Year! Merry Christmas!”, she added, wishing them “all the best”.
Russia and Ukraine have exchanged hundreds of prisoners since the Russian offensive began in February 2022 and regularly exchange the remains of soldiers killed in the fighting.