Every month, Ukraine captures more than 100 more Russians than Russia captures Ukrainians
In 2026, Ukraine is capturing an average of 107 more Russian servicemen each month than Russia is capturing Ukrainian servicemen. Over the first eight months of the year, the total difference in the number of prisoners of war was 858 servicemen.
The report noted that as early as 2023, Russian propaganda was spreading claims that more than 20,000 Ukrainian soldiers were allegedly being held captive by Russia. In January 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that the ratio of Russian to Ukrainian prisoners of war was supposedly “one to ten.”
At the same time, according to “I Want to Live,” starting in mid-2023, Ukraine began capturing more Russian soldiers than Russia was capturing Ukrainians.
In 2024 and 2025, the Ukrainian prisoner exchange pool, according to the project, grew faster than the Russian one. In 2026, this gap widened.
In the first eight months of the year, 858 more Russian servicemen were taken prisoner by Ukraine than Ukrainians were by Russia. On average, this amounts to 107 servicemen per month.
"I Want to Live" urges Russian soldiers to surrender
One of the factors cited in the project is the work of the Ukrainian information campaign “I Want to Live,” which, since September 2022, has been informing Russian servicemen about the possibility of safely surrendering and the conditions of their subsequent detention.
According to the project, its website has been visited by over 50 million people, mostly from Russia. Interviews with prisoners of war and information about their conditions of detention are also being shared with the Russian audience.
Ukrainian soldiers are eligible for bonuses for taking prisoners
“I Want to Live” notes that Ukrainian servicemembers who take Russian soldiers prisoner, risking their own lives, play a crucial role.
Ukraine also offers bonuses to service members for capturing enemy soldiers alive.
The project emphasizes that captured Russian soldiers can be used in future prisoner exchanges, through which Ukraine recovers its own servicemen and civilian hostages.
This was reported by the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, citing the “I Want to Live” project.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces will pay 100,000 hryvnias for each captured Russian soldier.
Three Ukrainians who were fighting for Russia were captured in Chasovoy Yar.
A Russian prisoner of war recounted how he killed his commander and covered up the crime.
