The international delegation, headed by Ana Lucía Bueno, ICRC Public Health Coordinator, and Sujit Panda, Head of the Physical Rehabilitation…
The “I Want to Live” project has for the first time published comprehensive statistics on more than 10,000 Russian servicemen who have been taken prisoner since the start of the full-scale invasion.
The statistics of the “I Want to Live” project were reported by the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War on December 31.
The number of Russians surrendering into captivity has been increasing every year. During the incomplete year of 2025, more Russian servicemen were taken prisoner than in 2022 and 2023 combined.
On average, 60 to 90 servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces surrender every week, while in August 2024 this figure reached 350 people per week. Since June 2023, Russian soldiers have been taken prisoner more often than Ukrainians captured by Russia.
The largest number of prisoners were taken in the Pokrovsk and Bakhmut districts of Donetsk Oblast, Kursk Oblast, and the Polohy district of Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
“In 2025, the number of foreign mercenaries taken prisoner increased sharply. Every week, 2–3 prisoners turn out to be recruited citizens of third countries. In total, nearly 7% of all Russian prisoners of war in Ukraine are foreigners from 40 countries around the world”, — the statement says.
A typical Russian prisoner of war is:
- 83% — enlisted personnel
- 13% — sergeants
- Nearly 3% — officers
- Age — from 18 to 65
- About 76% — contract soldiers (including those recruited in prisons and private military companies)
- 19% — mobilized personnel
- Nearly 5% — conscripts
Twenty-four percent of prisoners reported coercion or deception. Forty percent have criminal records, most commonly for theft, drug-related crimes, robbery and armed robbery, grievous bodily harm, and murder.
Only 7% have higher education, while 30% did not even finish school. Before the war, 38% were unemployed. Almost half have children, including 8% who have three or more.
Hundreds of individuals were taken prisoner with severe chronic illnesses, including HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, diabetes, and mental disorders.
“As part of exchanges for Ukrainian Defenders, slightly more than 6,000 prisoners of war were returned to Russia, more than half of them in 2025. At least 237 former Russian prisoners of war are known to have been killed or gone missing after being sent back to the front following an exchange. Four Russian soldiers are currently in captivity for the second time”, — the Coordination Headquarters stated.
It is noted that Russia primarily retrieves ethnic Russians from captivity who do not have severe injuries and who spent a short time in captivity. Russia does not request foreign mercenaries for exchange.
Thousands of Russian army prisoners of war, including the wounded, the sick, and conscripts, remain in Ukraine. For the fourth year in a row, Russia has refused exchanges based on the “all for all” principle.
