Russia and Ukraine exchanged a total of 230 prisoners of war on Saturday, following an intermediation by the United Arab Emirates. The exchange happened on the 33rd commemoration of Ukraine’s Independence Day of Ukraine from the Soviet Union.

The UAE Foreign Ministry noted that the recent exchange brings the total number of prisoners released through its mediation to 1,788. The Ministry applauded Russia and Ukraine for their cooperation, stressing that dialogue and de-escalation are crucial to address the conflict’ humanitarian impact. President Zelenskyy expressed gratitude to all involved in the exchange efforts, adding that Ukraine will continue to search and try to bring back army members.

According to the Ministry of Defense of Russia, the prisoners were captured in the Kursk region and will receive treatment in Belarus before their return to Russia.

In international law, the exchange of prisoners of war is governed by the Geneva Conventions, particularly the Third Geneva Convention, which oversees the treatment of prisoners of war. According to Article 118 of the Convention, parties to a conflict must release and repatriate prisoners of war without delay after the cessation of active hostilities.

While hostilities between both countries are still ongoing, making the implementation of the provision complicated, the clause “after the cessation of active hostilities” is designed to ensure that the repatriation of prisoners of war occurs as soon as it is practically possible. This means that while hostilities may resume in the strategic and legal sense, the critical consideration is whether they are “active” or not. If the fighting has temporarily paused during negotiations or a ceasefire, even in an isolated case such as a town or region, the threshold for meeting repatriation is met.