Russia, Ukraine exchange 10 prisoners of war each
Russia's annexation of Snake Island, also known as Zmiinyi Island, was widely reported in the early days of the war after Ukrainian soldiers at the small military station in the Black Sea rejected a looming Russian cruiser
Kyiv: On Thursday, Russia and Ukraine exchanged ten prisoners of war each, in what Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk described as the first full-fledged exchange of the month-old conflict.
The exchange also liberated 19 Ukrainian civilian sailors who were apprehended while attempting to transport Ukrainian troops off Snake Island in late February.
As part of the agreement, Ukraine released 11 Russian civilian sailors, according to Vereshchuk, who announced the transfer. She stated that the civilians had been rescued from a ship that had sunk near Odesa.
Russia's annexation of Snake Island, also known as Zmiinyi Island, was widely reported in the early days of the war after Ukrainian soldiers at the small military station in the Black Sea rejected a looming Russian cruiser
The soldiers were thought to have been killed at first, but Russian state media later announced that they had been captured.
It was unclear whether any Ukrainian soldiers from the island outpost were among the detainees exchanged on Thursday, but Ukraine's border guard agency indicated earlier in the day that Vereshchuk was working to liberate soldiers who had been stationed on Snake Island.
The Ukrainian civilian sailors that were freed by Russia were on board the Sapphire, a ship that travelled to the island on a search and rescue operation but was seized itself. According to Vereshchuk, as part of the swap, the Russian military will release their ship and send it to a dock in Turkey.
In the month-long conflict, Ukraine and Russia have engaged in at least two smaller prisoner swaps, including the exchange of nine Russian servicemen for Melitopol Mayor Ivan Fedorov.
On March 1, Ukraine's military announced the exchange of a captured Russian military police officer for five Ukrainian soldiers near Sumy, a northeastern Ukrainian oblast.