Extract from ABC News
Ukraine and Russia have announced their first exchange of prisoners of war in nearly five months.
Key points:
- Ukraine handed over 248 military personnel to Russia
- Russia handed over 224 soldiers and six civilians to Ukraine
- The last prisoner swap between the countries was in August 2023
More than 200 prisoners were freed by each side after what both said was a complex negotiation involving mediation by the United Arab Emirates.
Russia's Defence Ministry said 248 military personnel had been handed over by Ukraine. Kyiv said it had brought home 230 people — 224 soldiers and six civilians — in what it said was the largest documented swap of troops in the conflict so far.
A video released by Ukrainian authorities showed prisoners returning to a unknown location in Ukraine, filing off a bus draped in the country's blue and yellow flag, singing the national anthem and shouting the patriotic greeting "Glory to Ukraine".
Most, but not all, appeared to be in good health.
One returnee shouted: "We are home! You didn't forget us!"
The Russian Ministry of Defence released a similar video of returning uniformed prisoners arriving in the Russian city of Belgorod, in buses.
"I'll be home in five hours, roughly speaking, that's going to be a joy," said one unnamed man.
Despite a lack of talks on how to end the 22-month war, Kyiv and Moscow have held many prisoner swaps since the early months of Russia's invasion in February 2022.
But the rate of the exchanges dropped in 2023 and the last one until this week's was in August.
Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine's HUR Military Intelligence agency, singled out the UAE's "direct role", saying: "After a significant amount of time, we managed to carry out a very difficult prisoner swap."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said it was "truly a great day for Ukraine" and vowed to press on with further swaps facilitated by expanding what he called an "exchange fund" of captured Russian soldiers.
"The more Russians we capture, the more effective the negotiations regarding swaps will be," he said in his nightly video address.
He said some of the returnees had been previously listed as missing.
Ukraine's returnees included soldiers who took part in the nearly three-month defence of the Azovstal steel plant in the port of Mariupol before it was captured by Russian forces in May 2022.
The UAE's foreign ministry acknowledged its role, saying in a statement that the swap was made possible by its "strong friendly relations" with both Moscow and Kyiv.
The UAE has maintained close economic ties with Moscow despite Western sanctions and pressure on Russia after it launched its invasion in 2022.
Ukraine continues attack on Russian border city
Meanwhile, Russia shot down 12 missiles fired at one of its southern regions bordering Ukraine.
The situation in the Russian border city of Belgorod, which came under two rounds of shelling on Wednesday morning, remained tense, said regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov on Telegram.
"Air defence systems worked," he said, promising more details about possible damage after inspecting the area later in the day.
Ukraine fired two Tochka-U missiles and seven rockets at the region late on Tuesday, followed by six Tochka-U missiles and six Vilkha rockets on Wednesday, the Russian Defence Ministry said.
The Soviet-built Tochka-U missile system has a range of up to 120 kilometres and a warhead that can carry cluster munitions.
Ukraine has received some cluster munitions from the United States but the Tochka-U and Vilkha can use their own cluster munitions.
NATO members strike deal to buy up Patriot missiles
NATO announced on Wednesday that it would help member nations buy up to 1,000 surface-to-air Patriot guided missiles in a deal possibly costing about U$S5.5 billion ($8 billion).
The missiles are used to defend against cruise and ballistic missiles as well as enemy aircraft.
The purchase could help allies free up more of their own defence systems for Ukraine.
NATO's Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said "scaling up ammunition production is key for Ukraine's security and for ours".
Wires/ABC
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