Azov
Azov is a Ukrainian volunteer military unit, formed in 2014 as a special-purpose patrol police battalion in Mariupol. It was later reorganised and incorporated into the National Guard of Ukraine as a separate brigade. The brigade fought in the Donbas and played a central role in the defence of Mariupol, including the prolonged stand at the Azovstal steel plant after Russia's full-scale invasion. After prisoner exchanges and a period of restructuring, veterans of the unit formed a new formation in the Donetsk region, which is now commanded by Brigadier General Denys Prokopenko.
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Ukraine and Russia exchange 270 Ukrainian prisoners of war
Ukraine and Russia conducted a large prisoner exchange on 23 October 2026, returning 270 Ukrainians from Russian captivity. Most were defenders of Mariupol, while the group also included the last Ukrainian servicemembers captured at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant and 35 members of the Azov special-purpose unit.