Such claims by the enemy are “a lie,” according to Andriy Yusov.
“A lie that is deliberately spread with the intent to sow panic and despair within Ukrainian society,” the representative of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence (HUR) said.
He added that the enemy is also attempting to boost pro-war patriotic sentiment within Russia through such disinformation.
Yusov emphasized that while “tens of thousands” of Ukrainian prisoners remain in Russian captivity, Ukraine also holds thousands of Russian prisoners of war — and the exchange fund will continue to be replenished.
“We do not comment on specific figures, but we are talking about thousands of Russian occupiers in Ukrainian captivity,” he said.
In May, following the first stage of a large-scale prisoner exchange agreement reached during talks in Istanbul, the Russian propaganda Telegram channel Mash claimed that only about 1,300 Russian prisoners remained in Ukrainian captivity, while “almost 10,000” Ukrainian defenders were still being held by Russia.
The three-day “1,000-for-1,000” exchange was the sixth such exchange this year and the 65th since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Since March 2022, a total of 5,757 Ukrainians have been released through the negotiation process and prisoner exchanges coordinated by the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War. An additional 536 Ukrainians have been returned outside of formal exchanges.
The final stage of the “1,000-for-1,000” exchange took place on May 25, when another 303 Ukrainian soldiers returned home.