Ukraine returned 103 soldiers from Russian captivity

On August 19, Ukraine returned 103 service members from Russian captivity. Among those freed are fighters of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, and the State Border Guard Service. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the new exchange.

Among those coming home are military personnel who took part in the defense of Mariupol, as well as defended Ukraine in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk, and Sumy directions.

The president did not specify how long the released soldiers spent in Russian captivity or how many of them are officers, sergeants, and privates.

"We remember every man and woman who still remains in captivity. We are doing everything possible to bring all our people home", - Zelenskyy stated.

He also thanked the Ukrainian military who replenish the exchange fund, and the team involved in returning prisoners.

Russia announced a 103-for-103 exchange

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced that the exchange took place under the "103 for 103" formula. Thus, 103 prisoners of war were also handed over to the Russian side.

The previous major exchange took place on June 26. At that time, Kurs Ukrainy wrote about the return of 160 Ukrainian soldiers from Russian captivity. Most of them had been in captivity since 2022, and among those freed were 115 defenders of Mariupol.

Even earlier, on June 5, Ukraine returned 185 soldiers and one civilian. The Russian side then reported the exchange of prisoners of war under the "185 for 185" formula.

Based on materials from: Volodymyr Zelenskyy