With the assistance of UAE humanitarian efforts and mediation, 63 military personnel were released from captivity in Ukraine
Ukraine and Russia on Saturday exchanged some 200 prisoners of war (POWs), including some from “sensitive sectors,” after “complicated” negotiations, mediated by the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Reuters reported that Ukraine and Russia exchanged nearly 200 prisoners of war, in a process announced by each side, with the bodies of two British volunteers returned to Ukraine.
A Russian news agency, citing the Defense Ministry, reported that 63 Russian POWs had been released, including “sensitive people,” who had been swapped thanks to mediation efforts from the UAE.
Commenting on the release, Andrei Yermak, Ukrainian president’s chief of staff, said that 116 Ukrainians had been repatriated, adding: “We managed to return 116 of our people, defenders of Mariupol, warriors of Kherson, snipers of Bakhmut (the Front) and other heroes.”
The bodies of two British aid workers, Andrew Bagshaw and Chris Barry, had been repatriated to Ukraine, the Ukrainian official said.
The UAE’s mediation in liberating 63 military personnel from captivity in Ukraine is one of the results of the visit of HH the President of the State Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed to Russia last October, where the visit reaffirmed the great roles played by the UAE and its president in mediating between Russia and Ukraine in humanitarian issues.
The visit was held with high hopes of contributing to calming the conflict in Ukraine, amid the UAE’s efforts to contribute to regional and global security and stability, and to communicate with all parties concerned with the Ukraine crisis to reach effective political solutions. This was confirmed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who praised the role of the UAE President in resolving humanitarian issues in Ukraine, including the exchange of prisoners.
The advanced status that the UAE enjoys in international negotiations to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian crisis stems first from the strong relations between Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed on both sides of the conflict, be it Moscow or Kyiv, in addition to his effective communication with the Western capitals over the past years, in a way that qualifies him to play a successful and effective mediating role and contribute to putting an end to this conflict.
Since the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, the UAE has stressed the need to intensify efforts to examine options to allow unhindered humanitarian access to those in need, as manifested in its announcement on Wednesday 2 March 2022 of a $5 million aid package for affected civilians in Ukraine in response to the UN Flash Appeal and the Regional Refugee Response Plan in Ukraine.
The United Arab Emirates has played a major role in the prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine, in light of the worsening humanitarian situation on the battlefield, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov emphasized. “The UAE plays an important role in the prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine,” he said.
