BREAKING: Ukraine Secures Release of 205 POWs From Russian Captivity in Major Prisoner Exchange

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War announced a combined exchange on October 2. A total of 205 people were freed—185 Ukrainian servicemen and 20 civilians. Part of the exchange was carried out under agreements reached in Istanbul, while the rest took place within the framework of the 69th prisoner swap.

Those released include service members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine—among them the Navy, Ground Forces, Territorial Defense, and Air Assault troops—as well as the National Guard and State Border Guard Service. Both enlisted personnel and officers were returned.

According to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the freed defenders had fought on multiple fronts, including in Luhansk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Kyiv, Sumy, and Chernihiv regions. Among them are once again the Defenders of Mariupol, along with National Guardsmen who were captured while guarding the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant. The youngest returnee is 26 years old, the oldest is 59.

Almost all of those released had been held in Russian captivity since 2022. Upon their return, they will undergo full medical examinations and receive assistance for physical and psychological rehabilitation, as well as all state-guaranteed payments.

Earlier, Ukraine’s Security Service and the Main Intelligence Directorate warned Russia is preparing to intensify disinformation efforts about prisoner exchanges by circulating fake lists of Ukrainian casualties.

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