Russia and Ukraine swap 270 prisoners each

Oct 23 (Reuters) - Russia ‌and Ukraine ​have ​exchanged 270 people each in the latest prisoner-of-war swap, following talks with US ‌negotiators earlier this week.

Nine civilians were among those ⁠Kyiv was bringing back, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on ‌X. Most of the ‌servicemen have been held since 2022, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion, he added.

"We remember one ​and all and continue searching for everyone," Zelenskiy said.

Among those returned were five Ukrainian ⁠prisoners whom officials had previously believed were killed in an explosion at ​a detention facility in Olenivka, in Russian-controlled eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine accused Russia of committing ​a war crime with a ‌strike on Olenivka that killed dozens of prisoners. Russia said Ukraine had fired ⁠at the camp.

Russia's defence ministry said on Telegram that its freed servicemen were in Belarus and would ⁠be transported to Russia once they had received psychological and ​medical assistance.

Thousands of prisoners have been exchanged since the start of the full-scale war, one of the few areas ‌where Moscow and Kyiv have maintained on-off contacts despite the conflict.

The last large-scale ‌swap took place on August 19, when 103 ⁠Ukrainians were returned ‌from Russian captivity, ​and another 10 people were brought back later that month.

(Reporting by Reuters,Editing by Ros ‌Russell)

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