This is the largest prisoner exchange since the start of the conflict in Ukraine.
On the evening of Wednesday September 21, the head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, Andriï Iermak, announced on television that he had
“succeeded in freeing 215 people
”.
At the same time, Moscow picked up 55 prisoners.
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188 "heroes"
Among these 215 Ukrainians, kyiv ensures that 188 had defended the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, a symbol of resistance to the Russian invasion.
Men described as "
heroes
" by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
108 of them belong to the Azov regiment.
Five military commanders, including defense chiefs from Azovstal, were also transferred to Turkey, whose President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had spoken of the prisoner swap as a "
significant
" step forward in the conflict.
They will remain “
in absolute safety and in comfortable conditions
” until “
the end of the war
”, added the president truc.
Read alsoWar in Ukraine: among its neighbors, Moscow is losing its influence
Also at the heart of this exchange were ten prisoners of war, including five British and two Americans.
The latter were transferred from Russia to Saudi Arabia.
A decision welcomed by the British Prime Minister on Twitter, Wednesday evening.
"Extremely heartening news [...] ending months of uncertainty and suffering for them and their families
," she wrote, adding "
thank Volodymyr Zelensky for his efforts to obtain the release of the detainees , and Saudi Arabia for its assistance
.
A relative of Vladimir Putin released
On the Russian side, the 55 soldiers concerned by this exchange have already returned to their country this Thursday morning.
“They arrived by military planes and are in medical establishments of the ministry”
, assured the Russian Defense in a press release.
Few information concerning the identity and the role of these 55 Russians.
The only element brought by Volodymyr Zelensky, Viktor Medvedchuk, a close friend of Vladimir Putin, is one of the 55 people released.
However, the press release from the Russian Defense does not mention it. He had been accused of high treason in Ukraine.
In April, the Ukrainian president had proposed to Russia
“to exchange this man against [their] boys and [their] girls who are currently in captivity in Russia”
.
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This announcement comes a few hours after the order of partial mobilization of reservists given by Vladimir Putin, which provoked improvised demonstrations in at least 38 cities in Russia and the arrest of at least 1,332 people.
