How many Ukrainians have been held captive in Russia since 2022
According to the Coordination Headquarters, more than a thousand Ukrainian military personnel and civilians have been held captive by Russia since the start of the full-scale invasion.
Bogdan Okhrimenko, head of the Coordination Headquarters Secretariat for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, spoke about this in an interview with Ukrinform.
“Russia planned to capture Kyiv in three days, but security and defense forces repelled the offensive. However, civilians and military units that found themselves in the path of the advancing Russian troops became hostages of the situation. More than a thousand people have been held captive since 2022,” he said.
Okhrimenko noted that the Coordination Headquarters is working with the aggressor country to secure the release of this category of prisoners first and foremost.
He emphasized that poor nutrition and medical care, as well as systematic sadism toward Ukrainian civilians and military personnel, are taking their toll.
“We understand that these people must be a priority because their resources are running out,” Okhrimenko stated.
Ukraine recently repatriated 193 servicemen from captivity.
As a reminder, all 11 Ukrainian prisoners of war whom Russia transferred to Hungary in 2023 subsequently left the country. Most of them returned to Ukraine, while the rest moved to other countries.
Ukraine and Russia conducted a new prisoner exchange on the eve of Easter, but they were unable to agree on a larger number of releases. Kyiv claims it proposed expanding the lists, but the Russian side refused. Despite this, Ukraine expects the exchanges to continue.
