Ukraine and Russia Exchange Prisoners Ahead of Easter Ceasefire

Ukraine and Russia exchanged 175 prisoners of war each shortly before the Orthodox Easter holidays. President Volodymyr Zelensky said seven civilians were also returned to Ukraine, while most of the released soldiers had been in Russian captivity since 2022 and had fought on different parts of the front.

Moscow confirmed the same number of returnees, including civilians from the Kursk region, and said the exchange had been brokered by the United Arab Emirates.

At the same time, the two countries agreed to a brief 32-hour ceasefire over the holidays, due to run from Saturday afternoon until midnight on Sunday.

Zelensky said Ukraine would respect the ceasefire as long as Russia did the same.

(reuters, pir)