In new prisoner exchange, 193 Ukrainians exchanged for 193 Russians

In a prisoner exchange today, 193 more Ukrainians returning from Russia were released, mediated by the UAE and the US, and Ukraine released 193 Russians.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on X that members of the National Guard, army, Border Guard Service, police, and Special Transport Service had been released.

"They defended Ukraine on multiple fronts. Among them are those against whom Russia has initiated criminal proceedings, as well as the wounded," he said.

The released Ukrainians range in age from 24 to 60.

Zelensky added that prisoner of war exchanges are important and thanked everyone who helps with them.

The frequency of exchanges has recently increased, often with the mediation of the UAE.

The two sides exchanged 175 prisoners of war on April 11, and a total of 500 in March.

Ukrainian authorities announced in February that Russia was holding around 7.000 Ukrainians, while nearly 4.000 Russians were in Ukrainian captivity.

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, more than 7.000 Ukrainians captured by Russian forces have returned home.

Both international bodies and human rights organizations have expressed deep concern about the treatment of prisoners of war in that war.

Systemic abuse is rampant in Russia, and reports by Human Rights Watch and the UN (OHCHR) document a pattern of torture, including electric shocks, mock executions, and severe beatings.

Former Ukrainian prisoners of war described the extreme overcrowding of camps in Russia, starvation - some lost up to 40-70 kilograms, and the lack of basic hygiene or medical care.

Although Ukraine generally follows more transparent protocols in dealing with captured Russians, international observers have also documented allegations of abuse and Ukrainian executions of Russian soldiers.

In addition to prisoner exchanges, the two sides occasionally cooperate in exchanging bodies of the dead. In April, Russia returned the bodies of 1.000 soldiers to Ukraine, while Ukraine returned 41 bodies to Russia.