The Russian Ministry of Defense announced this Saturday that, following negotiations with the Ukrainian side, they achieved the release of more than 80 soldiers from that country who were captive in territories controlled by kyiv.
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In a statement, the portfolio specified: “On December 31, as a result of the negotiation process, 82 Russian soldiers who were in danger of death in captivity were returned from the territory controlled by kyiv.”
He added that the released servicemen would be flown to Moscow by the Military Transport Aviation of the Russian Air Force to undergo medical treatment and psychological rehabilitation at the Army’s medical facilities.
According to the leader of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, Denis Pushilin, the release of the Russian military was achieved following an exchange with the Ukrainian side, carried out in the 82-82 format.
The liberation operation of the uniformed officers also allowed the release of 41 prisoners of war from the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Lugansk, according to the ombudsman for that territory, Viktoria Serdiukova.
Starting on February 24, Russia deployed a special military operation to protect the population of Donbas, in eastern Ukraine, which since 2014 has been the victim of attacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, particularly nationalist formations.
The special military operation focuses on demilitarizing and denazifying Ukraine, and preventing it from being used by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to threaten Russia militarily.
