Kyiv, Ukraine - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has encouraged compatriots to keep on believing in victory over Russia in his Orthodox Easter message, as "a great Easter prisoner exchange" was reported. Meanwhile, Russian president Vladimir Putin delivered his own message to mark the occasion.

"The war could not erase us, our values, our traditions and our holidays," Zelensky said in a video released on Sunday, as millions of Orthodox Christians around the world rang in Easter Sunday with large midnight Masses.

The festival was overshadowed again this year by Russia's war against Ukraine, where fighting continues.

"Today we celebrate the resurrection of Christ. The main symbol is victory: the victory of good, the victory of truth, the victory of life. We celebrate Easter with an unshakeable faith in the irreversibility of these victories."

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Zelensky said that a year ago, just after Russia's invasion, prayers were being said for Ukraine to survive at all. Since then, they have forced Russians away from capital Kyiv and other areas, although fighting remains intense in the east.

"Today we pray that Ukraine wins," he added. "We have already come a long way. Perhaps the most difficult mountain is still ahead of us. We will overcome it. And together we will meet our dawn."

Referring to areas occupied by Russia, he said: "The sun will shine in the south, the sun will shine in the east, the sun will shine in Crimea. The yellow glowing sun in a peaceful blue sky - it will be the light of justice."

A glimmer of hope could be felt: A total of 130 Ukrainian soldiers have been released from Russian captivity around the Orthodox Easter holiday, according to Ukrainian sources.

"A great Easter prisoner exchange," the head of Ukraine's presidential office, Andriy Yermak, wrote on Telegram on Sunday. To this end, he posted photos showing dozens of men with the blue and yellow Ukrainian flag. "130 of our people are returning."

The exchange had already taken place in several stages over the past few days, Yermak added. There was initially no confirmation from the Russian side.

Since Russia's full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine more than a year ago, prisoner exchanges are the only field on which both warring parties are currently still regularly negotiating with each other.

A week ago, a total of around 200 Ukrainian and Russian soldiers were exchanged.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin lauded the Orthodox Church on the second Easter since his full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

He attended a service early Sunday in Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior together with Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin and the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill. Videos showed Putin and Sobyanin standing side by side with candles in their hands. Kirill also presented Putin with a decorated Easter egg.

In his Easter message published by the Kremlin, Putin praised the Russian Orthodox Church for its "active commitment to mercy and charity in the face of serious challenges" - seen as a nod to the war in Ukraine and Western sanctions on Russia.

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"The wonderful, beloved Easter gives hope to believers, inspires good thoughts and deeds, and serves to reaffirm high moral ideals and values in society," added the 70-year-old, who is facing an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes in Ukraine.

Kirill is regarded as an ardent supporter of Putin's war and has repeatedly defended it in the past, including in sermons.

The predominantly Orthodox Christian countries include Greece, Russia, Ukraine, Cyprus and Serbia.

The Orthodox Churches adhere to the Julian calendar in connection with Easter. For Catholics and Protestants, the Gregorian calendar applies. This usually results in the Orthodox celebrating the most important festival in the church year at a different time from the other Christians.

According to official figures, around 70% of the pre-war population of more than 40 million in Ukraine are Orthodox or Greek Catholic Christians.

In Kyiv, Easter celebrations were to take place under high security precautions. During the night, as usual, a curfew was in force until 5 AM.