(MENAFN) Russia and Ukraine conducted a prisoner exchange on Sunday, with each side releasing 146 military personnel, the Russian Defense Ministry reported. In addition, Russia received eight civilians who had been captured during Ukraine’s incursion into the Kursk Region last year.

The swap occurred at an undisclosed location. The Russian soldiers released are currently receiving psychological and medical support in Belarus before being transferred to Russia for further treatment and rehabilitation. The civilians from Kursk were welcomed in Belarus by Russian Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova. They had been held in Ukrainian custody following the August incursion, which Russian forces later repelled.

Moskalkova described the returnees’ experiences as extremely challenging, noting the severe hardships and psychological strain they endured. Russian negotiator Vladimir Medinsky, who has led multiple rounds of talks with Kiev in Türkiye this year, stated that the Ukrainian soldiers freed were selected from around 1,000 prisoners that Ukraine had previously refused to repatriate.

Medinsky added that Ukraine appears to have very few Russian prisoners left to exchange, while Russia still holds thousands of Ukrainian military personnel. Earlier this month, RT published a list of nearly 1,000 Ukrainian servicemen reportedly abandoned by Ukraine in Russian captivity, raising questions about whether they were truly wanted despite President Zelensky’s stated goal of an “all-for-all” swap.

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