Russia, Ukraine carry out prisoner swap

MOSCOW/KYIV — Russia and Ukraine carried out a new exchange of prisoners on Monday, with the two sides bringing home a combined total of more than 300 former captives.

Russia's Defense Ministry said that 150 Russian soldiers were freed from captivity as part of the exchange in which each side released 150 people.

"On Dec 30, as a result of the negotiation process, 150 Russian servicemen were returned from territory controlled by the Kyiv regime. In return, 150 Ukrainian army prisoners of war were handed over," the Russian ministry said.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said 189 Ukrainian prisoners, including military personnel, border guards and national guards, were freed.

"The return of our people from Russian captivity is always very good news for each of us. And today is one of such days: our team managed to bring 189 Ukrainians home," Zelensky said on the Telegram messaging app.

The reason for the discrepancy in numbers was not immediately clear.

In Moscow, the Defense Ministry said Russian servicemen were first taken to the territory of Russia's neighbor Belarus, where they received "psychological and medical assistance" before moving to Russia.

Zelensky thanked the United Arab Emirates authorities and other partners for facilitating the swap.

In a statement, the UAE Foreign Ministry emphasized the country's role as a reliable mediator, reiterating its dedication to pursuing peaceful solutions to the Ukraine conflict and addressing its humanitarian consequences, including assistance for refugees and captives.

This marks the tenth successful exchange of Russian and Ukrainian captives mediated by the UAE in 2024, according to the ministry.

Russia and Ukraine have conducted dozens of such prisoner exchanges during the nearly three-year conflict, which began in February 2022.

The prisoner exchange came as US President Joe Biden announced on Monday that the United States will send nearly $2.5 billion more in weapons to Ukraine as his administration works quickly to spend all the money it has available to help Kyiv before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan 20.

Aid package

The package includes $1.25 billion in presidential drawdown authority, which allows the military to pull existing stock from its shelves and get weapons to the battlefield faster. It also has $1.22 billion in longer-term weapons packages through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative.

Including Monday's announcement, the US has provided over $65 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the conflict began, The Associated Press reported.

In recent days, Russian and Ukrainian forces are still engaged in bitter fighting on the battlefield.

A Ukrainian drone attack in Western Russia caused a fuel spill and fire at an oil depot, Vasily Anokhin, the governor of Smolensk region, said on Tuesday.

Anokhin said that Russian air defense systems had "suppressed an attack by Ukrainian" drones in Yartsevo district.

Meanwhile, Ukraine said on Tuesday it downed six of 21 missiles launched overnight and in the early morning by Russia, reporting minor damage in the capital Kyiv and hits on infrastructure in the northern Sumy region.

Missile debris damaged three private buildings and two cars in one of the capital's districts, Kyiv's military administration said on Telegram.

In an interview published on Monday by the Russian foreign ministry, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia is against the deployment of Western peacekeeping troops to Ukraine as part of any settlement to end the conflict.

The Kremlin had previously said it was "too early to talk about peacekeepers".

Agencies - Xinhua