Prisoner Exchange "1000 for 1000": How the first stage took place

On the first day, 390 Ukrainians were freed — among them, military personnel who had been in captivity since 2022.

Ukraine and Russia have completed the initial phase of the prisoner-of-war exchange according to the "1000 for 1000" scheme.

TSN.ua has gathered everything known about the 65th prisoner exchange.

Prisoner exchange on May 23

On Friday, May 23, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine and Russia had started the largest prisoner exchange, which had been agreed upon during negotiations in Istanbul.

He also stated that the exchange would continue over the next two days.

“Today — 390 people. Saturday and Sunday — we expect the exchange to continue,” Zelenskyy noted.

The Ukrainian leader thanked everyone who helps return Ukrainians from Russian captivity.

“It’s very important to return everyone who is in captivity. We are checking every name, information on each person,” he emphasized.

The Head of State promised that diplomatic efforts would continue to make such steps possible.

Who was freed from captivity

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War reported that 270 military personnel and 120 civilians were freed from Russian captivity.

Among those released on May 23 were 3 women and 387 men.

According to the Head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak, those returned include soldiers who had been in captivity since 2022.

The freed defenders had fought in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, and Kherson directions, as well as taken part in battles in the Chernihiv, Sumy, and Kyiv regions.

“These are servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including the Navy, Air Assault Forces, Territorial Defense Forces, as well as the National Guard of Ukraine and the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine,” the Coordination Headquarters reported.

In turn, the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine reported that among those freed were seven border guards who had been captured in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. One of them had been in captivity since 2022, the rest since 2023.

After the exchange, the freed defenders will undergo medical examinations, receive assistance for physical and psychological rehabilitation, all due payments for the entire period of captivity, and reintegrate into society.

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