As news of the prisoner swap was announced, Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev threatened that Ukraine’s ongoing incursion of Kursk had given Russia formal grounds to use nuclear weapons.
Russia and Ukraine have exchanged more than 200 prisoners of war, officials have announced.
In a deal mediated by the United Arab Emirates, each side released 103 prisoners – including Russians captured since Ukraine’s incursion in the Kursk region began in August.
Both sides released images of soldiers being released, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying: “Our people are home.”
However, as news of the swap was announced, Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev threatened that Ukraine’s incursion into Kursk had given Russia formal grounds to use nuclear weapons.
Kyiv claims to now control almost 500 square miles (around 1,300 square km) of the border region following the launch of its surprise attack.
Moscow could either resort to nuclear weapons in the end, or use some of its non-nuclear but still deadly novel weapons for a large-scale attack, Mr Medvedev wrote on the Telegram messaging app on Saturday.
“And that would be it. A giant, grey, melted spot instead of ‘the mother of Russian cities’,” he said, referring to Kyiv.
Responding, Mr Zelenskyy’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak said of Russian President Vladimir Putin: “Loud threats of Putin’s regime testify only to his fear that terror may come to an end.”
The prisoner swap is the eighth of its kind since the beginning of the year, putting the total number of POWs exchanged at 1,994. Previous exchanges were also brokered by the UAE.
All 103 Ukrainians returned were from the military – 82 soldiers and privates and 21 officers – Mr Zelenskyy said.
Source: https://news.sky.com/story/ukraine-and-russia-exchange-more-than-200-prisoners-of-war-13214846