Russia and Ukraine each handed back 90 prisoners of war on Tuesday (June 26) in the latest of several periodic swaps in their 28-month-old conflict, with the United Arab Emirates overseeing the exchange as an intermediary, Reuters reports.
The last exchange took place on May 31, when each side handed over 75 prisoners of war, also with the UAE acting as a go-between. That was the first exchange in nearly four months.
Russia said prisoners brought home on Tuesday had faced mortal danger in captivity.
Ukraine said returnees had included soldiers who had defended the Azovstal steel mill in a three-month siege in 2022 and others taken prisoner when Russian forces briefly seized the defunct Chornobyl nuclear power station.
The UAE said its action as a go-between had been made possible by maintaining good contacts with both sides.
The Russian Defence Ministry, in a posting on the Telegram messaging app, said: "As a result of negotiations, 90 Russian prisoners of war who risked death in captivity are being returned from areas under Kyiv's control."
It said the Russian prisoners were able to return home "with the United Arab Emirates participating as an intermediary in a humanitarian capacity."
The freed Russian prisoners were being flown to Moscow, where they would undergo medical checks, the ministry said.
