Ukraine and Russia agree to large-scale prisoner exchange after second day of talks

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Thousands of Ukrainians are held in Russian captivity

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Ukraine and Russia agreed to a prisoner swap during talks in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, according to reports.

The US-brokered negotiations are the first to take place since February, when Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu launched an offensive against Iran, derailing progress on a potential ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow.

A large-scale prisoner swap has also been agreed during the discussions and may take place between the next two to three weeks, according to Russian news agency TASS citing Russian Lieutenant-General Alexander Zorin.

Zorin said that the exchange would consist of more than 1,000 prisoners on each side.

After the first day of talks US secretary of state Marco Rubio said that “a lot” of work was still to be done.

Russia’s chief negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said that mutual understanding had been achieved on some issues but that more talks are yet to be held to iron out differences.

It follows claims by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky that the US agreed with Ukraine’s assessment of what was happening on the battlefield and that Vladimir Putin lived in a “different reality”.

The Ukrainian leader said Russia had claimed that it held half of the Donbas region in Ukraine’s east.

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