Russia, Ukraine swap prisoners
Russia and Ukraine carried out a long-awaited swap of 70 prisoners yesterday, in a deal hailed by President Volodymyr Zelensky as a “first step” towards ending their conflict.
Planes carrying 35 prisoners from each side landed simultaneously in Moscow and Kiev, where relatives waiting at the airport broke into applause.
“We have taken the first step,” Zelensky said on the tarmac after greeting and hugging former prisoners at the airport. “We have to take all the steps to finish this horrible war.”
Among those swapped were 24 Ukrainian sailors, Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov and Russian journalist Kyrylo Vyshynsky.
Ukraine’s SBU security service confirmed that Vladimir Tsemakh, a fighter with Russian-backed separatists considered a key witness in the downing of flight MH17, was also released as part of the swap.
Anticipation had been building for days for the exchange, which involved weeks of behind-the-scenes negotiations.
Relations between Kiev and Moscow nose-dived in 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea and Moscow backed separatists in the eastern industrial regions of Donetsk and Lugansk. Fighting there has claimed more than 13,000 lives over the past five years.
US Pr3esident Donald Trump hailed the prisoner swap aas perhaps ‘first giant step to peace’. France’s foreign minister also welcomed, while urging “concrete new advances” by each side to end their five-year conflict.
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