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Not a single Azov fighter. Not a single Azov fighter was among the thousand Ukrainian prisoners of war exchanged over the last three days. At the same time, the bastard who had asked his prison guards for a knife to "cut the ones from Azov" has returned home. This feels like mockery — a cruel joke at the expense of those who have been held in Russian captivity for more than three years under the harshest conditions and inhumane pressure. A jeer at their families, loved ones, and brothers-in-arms. A show of derision towards those who were given guarantees — those who have an absolute right to be prioritized for exchange, because they went into captivity not at their own will, but by order of the High Command. Just days ago, Ukraine marked the third anniversary of the day when the Mariupol garrison left Azovstal, hoping that the fighters of the 12th Azov Brigade would be included in the announced 1,000-for-1,000 exchange. Those expectations failed. I will never believe the nonsense about Russia's reluctance to release Azov fighters being the sole reason for their repeated absence from exchanges. If that were truly the case, neither I nor other Azov fighters would have returned from captivity. That is not the reason. If the established mechanism has stopped working, then expecting a different result every time is madness. The strategy must change. If the Russians refuse to exchange Azov fighters for their regular soldiers, we must find alternatives — offer them someone more valuable than a contracted soldier from Omsk. Ukraine is packed with Russian agents — all our special services know this very well. The only thing they need is an order. I am confident the Russians would be far more interested in the priests of the Moscow Patriarchate who openly work for Russian special services than in the soldiers Russia floods Ukrainian soil with. At the same time, Ukraine should work on its engagement in the exchange processes between our Western allies and Russia. We have unique experience, knowledge, and information that is invaluable to the Western world. These too can become part of our exchange leverage. There are always options — we simply need to adapt and seek out new paths and configurations. Because not a single Azov fighter among the 1,000 exchanged POWs is a disgrace to the entire state. I do not believe that our government is interested in bringing Azov service members home, while the same people continue to ineffectively manage prisoner exchanges for the fourth year in a row.