Ukraine and Russia exchanged 175 prisoners of war each on Saturday when a 32-hour ceasefire began during the Orthodox Easter.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy printed pictures of Ukrainian soldiers being welcomed back home.
The group includes soldiers who have fought on different fronts, from Mariupol to Donetsk, Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions. Seven citizens were included.
“Some of them are injured. Most of them have been in captivity since 2022. And finally – they are at home,” Zelenskyy he said.
Despite the stalled diplomatic talks on the end of the war, Moscow and Kyiv agree to the agreement starting Saturday and lasting until midnight Sunday, when Orthodox Christians celebrate Easter, the Kremlin announced Thursday.
The prisoner exchange was mediated by the United Arab Emirates, Russia’s defense ministry he said. Zelenskyy has recently visited the UAE and other Gulf countries hit by Iran’s attacks to establish defense cooperation.
“Ukraine will observe the ceasefire and respond decisively. The absence of Russian attacks in the air, land, and sea will mean no response from our side,” Zelenskyy said, clearly extending the agreement even beyond the agreed time.
“The ceasefire over Easter can also be the beginning of a real movement towards peace – our side has made a corresponding proposal,” he said. he wrote on X, saying the idea of an extension of the pact has been presented to the Russians.
