Ukrainian defenders freed from Russian captivity — in photos

On Thursday, June 19, another POW exchange with Russia took place. As a result, Ukrainian defenders returned to their homeland.

It was announced by the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, on X.

POW exchange — several Ukrainians returned home

"Our people are returning home from Russian captivity. These are warriors of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, and the State Border Guard Service. Most of them had been held captive since 2022," the Head of State wrote home.
 
He also added that among the Ukrainian citizens who were returned from Russian captivity were defenders who fought in the Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, and Kyiv regions. 
 
"We are working to bring our people back. I thank everyone who helps make these exchanges possible. Our goal is to free every single one of them," Zelensky emphasized.

As a reminder, Zelensky shared the video showing the first emotions of the soldiers, which were exchanged on Thursday, June 12.

Earlier, Zelensky announced the Ukraine-Russia POW exchange, which took place on Tuesday, June 10.