Humanity, not sympathy: How Ukraine treats Russian POWs in its 'exchange fund'

Ukraine’s surprise attack on the Kursk region in Russia has allowed the country’s forces to take hundreds of enemy prisoners, who Kyiv hopes to exchange for Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) held in Russia. Our special correspondent was able to speak with several of these Russian POWs in the prison where they are being held in Ukraine. FRANCE 24 reports.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky calls Russian soldiers captured in the lightning offensive into the Kursk region, Ukraine's "exchange fund".

He hopes the prisoners of war taken in the surprise push that caught Russia off guard can be quickly exchanged for some of the roughly 6,500 Ukrainian soldiers that Moscow says it holds.

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The Ukrainian authorities have been granting international journalists, including FRANCE 24’s Gulliver Cragg, access to the prisoners.

FRANCE 24 is not revealing their identities, and reminds viewers that POWs cannot be considered to have full freedom of speech. Prison staff were present during the interviews, though not within earshot.

Click on the video player above to watch the report.

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