157 Ukrainian POWs, civilians come home in first exchange after months-long pause
Editor's note: The story was updated to include additional comments from Ukrainian officials.
Ukraine has brought back home 157 Ukrainians from Russian captivity in its latest exchange with Moscow, following an agreement reached during the latest round of peace talks in Abu Dhabi, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Feb. 5.
Moscow released 150 Ukrainian soldiers and seven civilians from captivity, according to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War (POWs).
Russia's Defense Ministry also reported releasing 157 Ukrainians in exchange for 157 Russian soldiers.
This is the first prisoner swap between Ukraine and Russia in almost five months, with Moscow halting the process throughout that time, according to Zelensky.
"Today's exchange came after a long pause, and it is critical that we were able to make it happen," Zelensky said.
"Without the determination of our warriors, such exchanges would be impossible. And thus every result achieved by our units is what also sustains the ability to bring Ukrainians home from Russia."
According to the headquarters, those returned to Ukraine include soldiers taken prisoner during the battle for Mariupol, as well as a National Guard member captured at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Kyiv Oblast.
Most of those released had been in Russian captivity since 2022, with the youngest being a 23-year-old soldier. The oldest of the freed captives is 63, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said.
Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine's Ombudsman, said that 18 of the soldiers returning from captivity had been illegally imprisoned in Russia.
The news came hours after U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said that the Ukrainian, Russian, and U.S. delegations had reached an agreement to swap "314 prisoners" between Kyiv and Moscow. The United Arab Emirates also helped broker the recent prisoner swap, according to Ukrainian officials.
"This outcome was achieved from peace talks that have been detailed and productive," Witkoff said.
"Discussions will continue, with additional progress anticipated in the coming weeks."
Zelensky said he had asked the Ukrainian delegation to address the topic of further POW exchanges, as there has been "no feedback" regarding them.
The previous POW exchange with Moscow was held on Oct. 2, 2025. Ukraine then brought home 185 soldiers and 20 civilians held in Russian captivity.
Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv has brought back more than 7,000 Ukrainians, Zelensky said. Over 2,500 Ukrainian POWs remained in Russian captivity as of early September, Ukraine's Interior Ministry said.
Earlier in the day, Ukraine, Russia, and the U.S. began the final day of peace negotiations in Abu Dhabi, after the first day concluded on Feb. 4.
Rustem Umerov, the secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, described the talks as "meaningful and productive," saying they were focused on concrete steps and practical solutions to end the war.
The meetings in the United Arab Emirates took place a day after Russia launched its most massive strike against Ukraine this winter, as Moscow resumes its campaign aimed at knocking out the country's power grid.
While the discussion was expected to focus on the two thorniest unresolved issues — the status of the Donbas region and post-war security guarantees for Ukraine — the re-escalation of Russian strikes led many to question the Kremlin's seriousness about peace talks.
