Main points
- On March 5, Ukraine and Russia exchanged prisoners, resulting in the return of 200 Ukrainian servicemen.
- Among those released are servicemen from various units, including the Defenders of Mariupol, who were held captive for almost 4 years.
Who was returned in the prisoner exchange on March 5 / Collage of Channel 24
Ukraine and Russia on March 5 carried out the first stage of the prisoner exchange, which was agreed upon at the talks in Geneva. 200 Ukrainian servicemen were returned from enemy captivity.
This was announced by Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.
Who was returned to Ukraine in the new exchange?
The Coordination Headquarters noted that 200 servicemen were released from Russian captivity on the instructions of the President of Ukraine.
Ukrainian Armed Forces servicemen returned home, including representatives of:
- Naval Forces;
- Ground Forces;
- Territorial defense;
- Unmanned Systems Forces;
- Airborne assault troops;
- Air Force
We were also able to return to Ukraine servicemen of the National Guard of Ukraine, the State Border Service, and the State Special Transport Service.
Among those released are the Defenders of Mariupol, who were held captive for almost 4 years. The released servicemen defended the country in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv and Zaporizhia directions. In addition to the soldiers and sergeants, officers were also released,
– the Coordination Headquarters emphasized.
They also assured that those released from captivity would undergo a full medical examination, receive assistance with physical and psychological rehabilitation, and all state payments.
200 servicemen returned to Ukraine in the exchange on March 5 / Photo by the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War
Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets noted that among those released are defenders who were captured in 2022. The oldest released person is 59 years old, the youngest is 27 years old.
“Another interesting feature: 18 of the returned Defenders celebrated or will celebrate their birthday in March,” noted the VRU Commissioner for Human Rights.
Lubinets noted that many of the released Ukrainian defense personnel are in a difficult psychological state, some have a critically low weight. Employees of the Ombudsman's Office were at the exchange site and recorded all the necessary moments.
The first stage of the prisoner exchange in March 2026 / Video from Dmytro Lubinets' Facebook
When was the last prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia?
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The last prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia took place on February 5. Then, 157 Ukrainians, including both military and civilians, were returned to their homeland.
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The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War added that among those returned home were 150 military personnel and 7 civilians. Kyrylo Budanov, in turn, noted that among those returned were 19 illegally convicted defenders, 15 of them to life imprisonment. As well as the defenders of Mariupol.
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Also at that time, as part of the exchange, it was possible to return serviceman Nazar Daletsky. He had been considered dead since 2022.