World

Russia and Ukraine to swap a total of 1000 prisoners

By AAP Newswire

Mar 6, 2026

Ukrainian prisoners of war — Ukrainian authorities have announced the exchange of 200 prisoners of war each with Russia. -EPA

Russia and Ukraine have announced the exchange of hundreds of prisoners of war, with 500 on each side repatriated in a swap mediated by the United Arab Emirates and the United States.

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The Russian foreign ministry said 200 soldiers had already returned from Ukraine and that a further 300 would follow on Friday, with a similar number transferred to Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy confirmed that 200 Ukrainians taken prisoner in the first year in Mariupol and the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions had returned home.

"Every time our people come home, it proves that Ukraine is working to bring everyone back. No one is forgotten," he posted on X.

Zelenskiy thanked the US for its mediation.

Russian chief negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said on Telegram that the swap had been agreed in Geneva during direct talks between Russia and Ukraine mediated by the US.

The two ⁠sides ‌have periodically traded POWs and returned bodies ‌of dead soldiers - most recently last week - despite a lack of progress towards ‌a peace agreement to end their four-year war.

The last major prisoner exchange took place more than a month ago.

with Reuters