Ukraine returned 185 defenders in another prisoner exchange with Russia. President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the exchange, but the details of the agreement remain undisclosed.
Each of the 185 is a person who spent months or years in Russian captivity. According to human rights advocates, the conditions of detention of Ukrainian prisoners of war systematically violate the Geneva Conventions: torture, lack of medical care, information isolation. The return of even one person is a concrete result. The return of 185 is a scale that is difficult to comprehend abstractly.
Zelensky in his comment emphasized the work of the coordination headquarters on the treatment of prisoners of war, but did not disclose whom Kyiv transferred in return and under what conditions the agreement took place. This is standard practice — the details of exchanges are usually not disclosed in order not to complicate future negotiations.
The problem lies elsewhere: the total number of Ukrainians who remain in captivity is still unknown even officially. Estimates vary from several thousand to tens of thousands of people. Without verified data, it is impossible to assess whether the current pace of exchanges is sufficient — or if it is just a drop in the ocean.
The International Committee of the Red Cross still does not have full access to detention sites on both sides, making independent monitoring impossible. Agreements are concluded — but without a mechanism to verify whether detention conditions are being maintained between exchanges.
If Kyiv and Moscow are able to negotiate exchanges even during active hostilities — why is there still no international mechanism that would record the number of prisoners and the conditions of their detention in real time?
