Zelenskyy: 8,669 Ukrainians returned home from Russian captivity over four years

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday said that 8,669 Ukrainians have been returned home from Russian captivity over the past four years.

Zelenskyy added the returns were made possible through the work of a special coordination centre established to facilitate prisoner exchanges and repatriations.

“In March, we marked the fourth anniversary of one of our most important state institutions - the one that brings people back from captivity and gives hope to everyone that they will see their homes again,” he said.

Zelenskyy noted that among those returned are both military personnel and civilians, some of whom had been held since the early years of the conflict, including the period of hybrid war more than a decade ago.

“Every return is good news - any day, week, or month - because it means lives are being saved,” he added.