Russia accused of prioritizing ethnic Russians in prisoner exchanges
A report suggests Russia's Ministry of Defense has allegedly prioritized ethnic Russians in prisoner of war exchange lists, with statistics indicating a disparity in the ethnic composition of exchanged captives.
A report by Radio Svoboda's "Siberia.Realities" project indicates that Russia's Ministry of Defense has allegedly prioritized ethnic Russians in prisoner of war exchange lists. According to statistics from the Ukrainian project "I Want to Live," over 6,000 Russian service members have been returned to Russia through exchanges between 2022 and 2025, with 52% of these occurring in 2025. The report suggests a disparity in the ethnic composition of exchanged prisoners compared to the overall POW population. While ethnic Russians constitute 66% of all Russian prisoners of war, a disproportionately higher percentage of those exchanged are reportedly ethnic Russians, leading to accusations of discrimination against non-ethnic Russian captives.
Sources: Radio Svoboda