Coordination headquarters uses entire intelligence arsenal to return prisoners home – Budanov

This was announced by the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and the head of the Coordination Headquarters, Kirill Budanov, at the conference “He, the fight, the return – three years”, dedicated to the third anniversary of the creation of the Headquarters, as reported by Ukrinform.

“On the instructions of the president, we have taken on the difficult task of freeing our prisoners from enemy captivity. 62 exchanges, 4,300 released, and another 469 rescued outside of official exchanges. […] We rejoice at every individual returned home. We actively interact with society and the media. We have a long way to go, and we will proudly fulfill our mission. We will return everyone,” Budanov noted.

Read also: Ukraine has returned 4,306 prisoners from Russian captivity – Zelensky

He added that in addition to the prisoner exchange, over the past three years the Coordination Headquarters has managed to repatriate more than 7,000 bodies of fallen Ukrainian defenders.

Budanov thanked the law enforcement officers who took part in the Headquarters’ actions, as well as government agencies, including the Office of the Human Rights Commissioner, the Cabinet of Ministers, the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC), the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Office of the President.

“Our successes would not have been possible without you – the staff of the Coordination Headquarters, both permanent and temporarily seconded, as well as volunteers, activists, family organizations and all who care. You are our main support in this mission,” he added.

Over the past three years, the Headquarters has developed a comprehensive support system for prisoners’ families. Several regional centers have been created, and prisoners of war and missing persons now have personalized electronic accounts that display up-to-date information about their status.

“The Coordination Headquarters uses the latest technologies and the entire arsenal of military intelligence to search for and return our prisoners. We work not only with prisoners of war, but also with civilians and their families. Unfortunately, the aggressor is holding hundreds of our civilians in conditions similar to those of prisoners of war,” Budanov said.

On March 19, Ukraine and Russia conducted one of the largest prisoner exchanges to date, returning 175 Ukrainian defenders from Russian captivity and bringing home another 22 servicemen in a special exchange outside the official process.