Russia and Ukraine Exchange 350 Prisoners Ahead of Orthodox Easter Ceasefire

Russia and Ukraine exchanged 175 prisoners of war each on Saturday, April 11, 2026, in a swap totaling 350 military personnel, mediated by the United Arab Emirates. The Russian Defence Ministry confirmed the exchange in a statement published on the Kremlin-backed messenger MAX, saying 175 Russian service members were returned from territory controlled by Kyiv in exchange for 175 Ukrainian prisoners of war. Russia also returned seven civilians from the Sudzhansky district of the Kursk region, all residents of an area that Ukrainian forces had partially controlled in 2024 and 2025. Kursk region governor Alexander Khinshtein confirmed the civilian returnees included five women and two men, the eldest of whom is 91 years old. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the exchange on his social media channels, writing that 175 service members — soldiers of the Armed Forces, national guards, and border guards, including privates, sergeants, and officers — had returned home alongside seven civilians.

„Our soldiers are returning home. 175 servicemen. Soldiers of the Armed Forces, national guards, border guards. Privates, sergeants, and officers. And seven civilians.” — Volodymyr Zelenskyy via Mediafax

Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, both sides have conducted multiple prisoner exchanges. In early February 2026, a "157 for 157" swap took place, followed by a "200 for 200" exchange on March 5 and a "300 for 300" exchange on March 6, the latter with participation from both the UAE and the United States. On April 9, Russia handed over the remains of 1,000 Ukrainian servicemen to Kyiv, receiving 41 bodies in return. Prisoner exchanges represent one of the few areas of concrete cooperation between the two warring parties amid broader stalled peace negotiations.

Most returnees held since 2022, fought across multiple fronts Zelenskyy stated that the majority of the returned Ukrainian soldiers had been in captivity since 2022, describing their release as a long-awaited homecoming. Among those freed were soldiers who had defended Mariupol, fought near the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, and served in the directions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kyiv, and Kursk. „Our soldiers defended Ukraine on various fronts - in Mariupol, at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, in the directions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kyiv, and Kursk. Some of them are wounded.” — Volodymyr Zelenskyy via Berliner Zeitung The Russian Defence Ministry noted that the 175 Russian service members returned from Ukrainian custody were taken to Belarus, where they were to receive medical and psychological assistance. Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets and Russian human rights commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova both confirmed the exchange. Zelenskyy also thanked Ukrainian units responsible for capturing Russian soldiers, emphasizing that building up prisoner reserves was essential to securing the release of more Ukrainians held in Russia.

Recent Russia-Ukraine prisoner exchanges: — ; — ; — ; — ; —

Putin orders 32-hour Easter truce as drones fly overnight The prisoner swap took place just hours before a 32-hour Orthodox Easter ceasefire ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin was set to begin at 4:00 PM local time on Saturday, running until the end of Sunday, April 12. The Kremlin announced the truce without prior consultations with Ukraine or the United States, but Zelenskyy confirmed Ukraine would observe it on condition that Russia did not attack first. „As long as there are no Russian attacks from the air, land, or sea, there will be no reaction from our side.” — Volodymyr Zelenskyy via Berliner Zeitung Zelenskyy also renewed his proposal to convert the temporary truce into a permanent ceasefire, stating that the initiative for an extension had been handed to the Russian side. Both sides had announced a similar Easter ceasefire in 2025 and subsequently accused each other of violations. Despite the announced truce, overnight drone attacks preceded the ceasefire window, with Russia launching at least 160 drones at Ukraine and Ukraine launching 14 drones at targets in Russia, including an oil refinery in the Samara region, according to Ukraine's military.

160 (drones) — Russian drones launched at Ukraine overnight before truce

Odesa, Poltava, Sumy hit; two dead in Russian-held Donetsk The overnight drone attacks caused casualties on both sides before the ceasefire was due to take effect. In Ukraine, at least 4 people were killed and 17 others injured across several regions, according to Ukrainian authorities. In Odesa, two people were killed and two others injured when a residential area was struck. In the central Ukrainian region of Poltava, a shop and a café were hit, killing one person. In the northeastern region of Sumy, 14 people were injured, including a 14-year-old and an 87-year-old. Russian-controlled areas also reported losses, with two people killed by a Ukrainian drone in the Moscow-controlled Donetsk region, and attacks in the southern Russian region of Krasnodar damaging a residential building and setting an oil depot on fire. Russia's defence ministry said its air defenses shot down 12 of the 14 Ukrainian drones launched overnight.

Russia (toward Ukraine): 160, Ukraine (toward Russia): 14, Ukrainian drones shot down: 12