Since the beginning of the full-scale war, 6,622 Ukrainians have been returned from captivity, — Lubinets
Since the beginning of the full-scale war, thanks to the joint work of state authorities and international partners, 6,622 Ukrainians have been returned from Russian captivity.
This was reported on Telegram by the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets.
“As part of the first stage of implementing the agreements reached during the negotiations in Geneva, 200 of our defenders are returning to their Homeland,” Lubinets noted.
Among those released are servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including the Naval Forces, the Territorial Defense Forces, the National Guard, the State Border Guard Service, and the State Special Transport Service. Most of those returning home are from the ranks of soldiers and sergeants.
Among the released are defenders of Azovstal and Mariupol, as well as soldiers who defended Ukraine on the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia directions. Some of them were captured as early as 2022.
“The oldest of those released is 59 years old, the youngest is 27 years old. Eighteen of the returned defenders celebrated or will celebrate their birthdays in March,” Lubinets added.
According to him, “many of the released are in a difficult psychological condition. Some have been recorded as having critically low body weight. Employees of the Ombudsman’s Office were present at the exchange site and documented all the necessary details.”
“We are monitoring compliance with the norms of international humanitarian law regarding prisoners of war,” the Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada for Human Rights emphasized. He stressed that the exchange became possible thanks to the work of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War and is being carried out on the instructions of the President of Ukraine.
Lubinets reminded that this is already the second exchange in 2026.
In total, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, 6,622 Ukrainian citizens have been returned, the Ombudsman added.
Ukraine and the Russian Federation carried out another prisoner of war exchange on March 5, during which it was possible to return 200 Ukrainian defenders home.
On March 5, the first stage of a prisoner of war exchange between Ukraine and Russia took place. According to the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate, Kyrylo Budanov, this exchange is part of the agreements reached during negotiations in Geneva.
