303 Ukrainian Soldiers Return in Final Stage of Major 1000-for-1000 Prisoner Swap With Russia

Ukraine has brought home 303 service members in the final stage of a major prisoner-of-war exchange with Russia, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on May 25.

The release marks the third and final round in a multi-day operation under a previously agreed “1,000-for-1,000” framework between the two countries.

“Today, 303 more of our warriors returned home,” Zelenskyy said.

“Soldiers from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard, the State Border Guard Service, and the State Special Transport Service.”

According to Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the liberated personnel had defended Ukrainian territory across several front lines, including the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as in Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Kherson, Sumy, and Chernihiv oblasts.

Among those returning are 70 defenders of Mariupol, many of whom were captured during the city’s siege in 2022.

This exchange represents the 65th prisoner swap since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion and the sixth swap in 2025.

Officials say it concludes the latest large-scale exchange, which has been carried out in stages over several days.

Since March 2022, a total of 5,757 Ukrainian captives have been freed through formal exchanges. An additional 536 individuals have been returned through alternative means, according to government figures.

Earlier, on the second day of a large-scale prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia, 307 Ukrainian defenders returned home.

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