Former Kherson mayor Volodymyr Mykolaienko, who spent more than three years in Russian captivity, spoke about this in an interview with Espreso.He talked about his emotions after being released from captivity.“It was truly a joyous day. But honestly, we had no information beforehand. Even when they take you out of the cell, you don’t know where you’ll be taken next — whether to another cell or if the realization of your dream will actually happen and you’ll go home,” Mykolaienko said.He added that he was first taken out on August 20.“They took us to another cell, which we all called ‘the portal,’ because we knew that from this cell prisoners were sent for exchange. There were four of us: Dmytro Khiliuk, a journalist, Yevhen Vovk, Dmytro Yuzvak, and me as the fourth. We were changed into new clothes, weighed, measured for height, photographed, and forced to sign statements claiming we had no complaints against this country called Russia. Since we were dressed in military uniforms, we expected an exchange.To our despair and surprise, on the 21st we were dressed again in prison garb, told that Ukraine didn’t want to see us. Of course, we knew this was a lie — some kind of manipulation — and we were sent back to the cells,” the former mayor recounted.Mykolaienko emphasized that he was very grateful to God that the wait between expecting the exchange and being returned to the cell lasted only one day.“Because in my cell there was a guy who had been waiting like this for 21 days. Then they returned him to the cell — just imagine his psychological state. Then on the 23rd, the doors opened again, and they told me to come out. I didn’t even have time to get dressed, and there was this military uniform waiting for me, with shoes two sizes too small. But even in those boots, I was ready to crawl home if I had to.We were put in a prison transport van, just the two of us — me and Dmytro Khiliuk. Only the two of us were sent, most likely to Moscow, where we waited a day at the airport. There, a group of about 150 Ukrainian prisoners of war was assembled. On the morning of the 24th of August 2025, we were put on a plane and sent home,” he said.The former mayor noted that the strongest emotions came when they reached Ukrainian territory and saw familiar faces.“When we met with representatives of our government delegations, met volunteers, and, in a broader sense, met our family — because, as I feel, we are all truly connected, we understand each other, we are proud of each other, and we love each other,” Mykolaienko concluded.