205 defenders have returned home: prisoner exchange

May 15, 2026. Exchange of prisoners of war. In the video: relatives await the released prisoners of war; photos and posters with the faces of the missing; ambulances; people chanting “Welcome home!”; the released prisoners walk by; people chanting “Welcome!” and calling out the names of their loved ones; handing out photos to the released prisoners; a man hugging a man released from captivity; a woman near the bus hugs her husband, who has been released from captivity; a brother hugs his brother, who has been released from captivity; buses carrying the released prisoners of war depart from the coordination center; relatives await the prisoners: photos, posters with the faces of the missing; people stand outside the building, waiting for their loved ones; on the building’s wall are photos of the prisoners.

Interviews: Serhiy Yeshchenko—brother of a released captive; Marina Pysanova—wife of a released infantryman; Lyubov Dzhugova—mother of a released Marine; Oleksandr—uncle of a released prisoner; Alisa—mother of Roman Yarzemsky, who is missing in action; Lyubov Chyzhevska—mother of Yevhen Chyzhevsky, who is missing in action; Lidiya Yanchevska—mother of Dmytro Yanchevsky, who is missing in action; Valentyna Pylypenko — mother of Oleksandr Pylypenko, who is missing in action; Alona Baklanova — sister of Oleg Yaroshenko, who is missing in action; Lyudmyla — mother-in-law of Aslan Ediev, who is missing in action.

Background: On May 15, 2026, Ukraine and Russia carried out a prisoner exchange. A total of 205 defenders returned to Ukraine. This was the first phase of a 1,000-for-1,000 exchange between Russia and Ukraine, mediated by the United States. Among those released were privates, sergeants, and officers. Most of them had been held captive by Russia since 2022. They defended Ukraine in Mariupol and at Azovstal, as well as in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, and Kyiv regions, and at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.