Ukraine has returned 45 soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard, the State Border Guard Service and two civilians from Russian captivity, head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak said.

"There is also good news today. We managed to return home from captivity 45 of our soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard, the State Border Guard Service and two civilians. Among them are two officers, 41 privates and a sergeant, a civilian employee of Azovstal and a territorial defense officer from Kherson," Yermak wrote on the Telegram channel on Thursday.

Head of the President’s Office reported that defenders of Mariupol and Azovstal, as well as military personnel from Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Kharkiv directions, including defenders of Bakhmut, were returned home. There are wounded warriors among them.

In addition, children aged 6 and 10, who were illegally deported by Russia, were returned to Ukraine.

"Also, today we are returning home Ukrainian children illegally taken to Russia - 6-year-old Renat and 10-year-old Varvara. Their mother, a combat medic, was liberated during a large exchange in October 2022. She and her husband have been waiting for the return of their children for a long time, whom Russia illegally deported, trying to hide the abduction," Yermak wrote.