Video Fact: Ukrainian Mother And Son Meet In Belarus After Three Years Of Captivity

• 20.04.2025, 12:44

They were captured in 2022 by Russians at Azovstal in Mariupol.

Mother and son, Margarita and Ruslan Vinograd, unexpectedly met on April 19 after almost three years of Russian captivity. The Russians captured them in May 2022 at Azovstal, Suspilne Novyny reports.

Having been captured in Mariupol, the relatives knew nothing about each other's fate. On April 19, during a prisoner exchange in Belarus, they saw each other for the first time on a bus and were able to hug for the first time in almost three years. Ruslan is now 22 years old. While in captivity, he wrote letters to his mother, mistakenly thinking that she had already been released.

On Saturday, April 19, Ukraine and Russia held one of the largest prisoner exchanges. 277 military personnel returned to Ukraine, including 268 soldiers and sergeants and nine officers.