Russia and Ukraine carried out another exchange of people held in captivity on October 23. A total of 270 people returned to Ukraine, including 261 service members and nine civilians. Russia's Defense Ministry reported the return of 270 Russian military personnel.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the return of the Ukrainians. According to him, most had been held in captivity since 2022.
Those released included personnel from various Ukrainian military units, among them defenders of Mariupol. Others had been captured in different parts of the front.
Zelenskyy said five of those released had previously been presumed dead following the explosion at the prison in Olenivka in July 2022.
Ukraine accuses Russia of responsibility for the Olenivka explosion, which occurred at a facility holding Ukrainian prisoners of war. Russia blames Ukraine. The accounts contradict each other, and the circumstances require an independent investigation.
Russia's Defense Ministry said the returned Russian service members were in Belarus, where they were receiving medical and psychological assistance before returning to Russia.
Exchanges of people held in captivity remain one of the few areas of direct interaction between Moscow and Kyiv during the full-scale war.
The previous major exchange took place on August 19. On October 22, the two sides separately exchanged the bodies of deceased military personnel.
The total number of people exchanged should be distinguished from their status: nine of the 270 people returned to Ukraine were civilians, so describing all those released on the Ukrainian side as prisoners of war would be inaccurate.