Ukraine has repatriated more soldiers than are currently being held captive
The number of Ukrainian prisoners of war still held in Russian captivity is lower than the number of defenders who have already been released. This was stated by Dmytro Lubinets, the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, while commenting on the results of prisoner exchanges and efforts to bring soldiers home.
“The number of prisoners of war who remain in Russian captivity is lower than the number of those we have returned from Russian captivity,” he said.
Lubinec did not specify the number of Ukrainian prisoners of war, noting that the Russian side does not know the exact number of Russians held in Ukrainian captivity, while the Ukrainian government does not publicly disclose the number of Ukrainians held in Russian captivity.
In addition, the ombudsman reported that according to the Register of Missing Persons, 16,000 civilians are considered missing in the temporarily occupied territories. As of today, the Ukrainian side has verified 1,887 Ukrainian civilians currently held in Russian captivity. According to him, 878 people were verified through the mechanisms of the International Committee of the Red Cross, while the rest were identified through the security services.
As a reminder, Ukraine has already managed to return 2,126 children abducted by Russia as part of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative.
Ukraine has managed to return two children who were left without parental care in Kazakhstan and found themselves in a foreign country. The brother and sister were evacuated from Almaty following a complex, multi-stage operation coordinated by Ukrainian services. The children are now safely at home.
