By BBC Eastern Europe correspondent Sarah Rainsford in Kyiv & Jaroslav LukivBBC News31 January 2024, 13:45 GMTUpdated 1 hour agoImage source, @V_Zelenskiy_officialImage caption, One Ukrainian soldier was seen kissing the country’s national flag after the reported exchangeRussia and Ukraine have completed a swap of captured soldiers – this is the first such exchange since the crash of a Russian plane that Moscow claimed was carrying 65 prisoners of war (PoWs).Russia’s military has announced that each side received 195 soldiers back on Wednesday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that 207 Ukrainian soldiers and civilians have been returned.Kyiv has raised doubts about Moscow’s assertions that Ukrainian PoWs were on the plane that was shot down last week. Russian President Vladimir Putin stated on Wednesday that the Il-76 military transport plane was downed by an American Patriot system in the western Belgorod region.Prior to this, the Russian military claimed that 65 Ukrainian soldiers were onboard the plane, which was en route to the area for a prisoner exchange. According to the military, there were also six Russian crew members and three officials escorting the PoWs on board, and there were no survivors.Moscow has blamed Ukraine for the plane’s crash, while Kyiv has neither confirmed nor denied this accusation. Russian officials have not provided any concrete evidence to support their claims, and it is noted that they have a history of deceit and disinformation. Last week, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s military intelligence informed the BBC that the possibility of PoWs being on that plane “could not be excluded”.There has been no independent verification of the details surrounding those onboard, and both sides have called for an international investigation. Official statements from Kyiv have emphasized the country’s right to defend itself from Russian missiles fired at Ukraine, particularly from Belgorod, near the Ukrainian border.Many in Ukraine are questioning why Russia has not shown images of numerous casualties after the plane crash to substantiate its claims. Wednesday’s exchange marks the 50th PoW swap since President Putin initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In a brief statement, the Russian defense ministry announced that the exchange was successfully carried out following negotiations with Kyiv.”The released military personnel will be transported by military transport aircraft to Moscow for treatment and rehabilitation,” the ministry said.The ministry also released footage showing the exchanged Russian soldiers boarding a bus before their flight to Moscow. Meanwhile, President Zelensky expressed in a social media post: “Our people are back. 207 of them. We return them home no matter what.”We remember every Ukrainian in captivity, both warriors and civilians. We must bring all of them back,” he said, thanking Ukraine’s top security officials for facilitating the latest exchange.Videos filmed by Ukrainian authorities depict the released PoWs disembarking from buses with wide smiles and shouting “Glory to Ukraine!” One soldier is so overwhelmed with joy at being back that he drops to the ground and rolls in the snow.The men, wearing Russian prison uniforms, appear gaunt and with closely-shaven heads after their time in captivity. Some are in tears while talking to relatives on the phone. In the video, they are all shown wrapped in Ukraine’s national blue-and-yellow flags, singing the country’s anthem. The exchange was conducted secretly for security reasons. The United Arab Emirates served as a mediator, as it did earlier this month, but no details about the negotiations have been disclosed. Andriy Yermak, Mr. Zelensky’s head of office, stated that among those released were National Guard members, border guards, and police officers.Ukraine has stated that none of the 65 men who were supposed to be released last week, and whom Russia claims were killed, are among those who were recently exchanged. However, according to Ukrainian defense intelligence spokesman Andriy Yusov, some of the soldiers returned on Wednesday were part of last week’s planned exchange. The BBC has spoken to friends and relatives of the 65 individuals. They prefer not to comment publicly but emphasize the lack of evidence at this point and maintain hope. “Of course, we’re worried,” a friend of one prisoner told the BBC. “But there is no information, no proof.”There are still thousands of Ukrainian PoWs being held in Russia. Their families typically have no contact with them and remain unaware of the men’s fates until they are suddenly released in a prisoner swap.One woman, Tetyana, whose son was captured in Ukraine’s southeastern city of Mariupol in 2022, stated that she has not heard directly from her son since. The last confirmation of his well-being was over a year ago, when a released prisoner confirmed that they had shared a cell. Tetyana described the anguish of living with such uncertainty and having to convince herself each day that her son is still alive.
