Hundreds of POWs Freed in Latest Russia-Ukraine Prisoner Swap

[C0RI0LANUS]

Some of the 189 Ukrainian POWs on a bus. (30 Dec photo: RFE/RL)

The United Arab Emirates brokered another prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine, freeing hundreds of POWs including 189 Ukrainians.

“These are the...defenders of Azovstal and Mariupol, the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, Zmiiniy Island, from different directions of the front,” Ukrainian President Volodomir Zelenskiy said. “Among them are soldiers, sergeants, officers.”

Two civilians who were captured in Mariupol also were among those released.

The Russian Defense Ministry also announced the prisoner exchange, saying the number released was 150 on each side. There was no explanation for the discrepancy.

Russia and Ukraine have conducted 59 POW exchanges since the beginning of the full-scale war.

Hundreds of Ukrainian Marines Missing After 'Hell on Earth' 2023 Battle For Krynky


Ukrainian marines board a boat on the shore of Dnipro river at the front line near Kherson. (Credit: AP)

Families of missing Ukrainian marines are desperate to learn whether the servicemen were killed or captured following a risky mission to liberate the village of Krynky. After crossing the Dnieper River in late 2023, the marines failed to hold a bridgehead on the Russian-occupied eastern bank.



Months of fighting that lasted until this summer reportedly left more than 250 Ukrainian marines dead and nearly 800 unaccounted for. The families of the missing marines say they have been stonewalled by representatives of the military units in which their relatives served. Perhaps some of the returning POWs will be these marines or may have information on those poor devils who have been unaccounted for.


Ukrainian military chief: Russian military suffered 427,000 casualties in 2024.


Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief General Oleksandr Syrskyi visited troops in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, on 30 Dec 2024.

Russian forces have suffered around 427,000 soldiers killed or wounded this year, mainly in battles in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on 30 Dec.

"Russia continues to carry out constant 'human wave' assaults, suffering record losses. Last week, Russian forces have been losing around 1,700 people killed and wounded every day," Syrskyi said on Telegram after visiting units deployed in Donetsk Oblast.

Ukraine claimed that Moscow's troops suffered their highest casualties in Nov and Dec 2024, putting Russia's overall losses throughout the full-scale war at nearly 790,000 by the end of the year.

The figures could not be independently verified. Moscow does not reveal the scale of its war losses but alleges they are lower than those of Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine had lost 43,000 soldiers on the battlefield since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, in addition to 370,000 WIA.

Older DU-ers will recall joyful scenes like this on the evening national news.


USAF Lt Col Robert L. Stirm being reunited with his family after spending more than five years in captivity in North Vietnam. Stim was shot down over Hanoi on 27 Oct 1967 while leading a fight of F-108s on a bombing mission. The aviator was not released until 14 Mar 1973. Stirm's 15-year-old daughter Lorrie is excitedly greeting her father with outstretched arms.

Sources:

https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-prisoners-of-war-swap/33258288.html

https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/articles/2024/11/18/7484985/

https://kyivindependent.com/russia-suffers-427-000-casualties-in-2024-syrskyi-claims/