Ukraine and Russia have conducted a rare exchange of prisoners of war and civilians after two days of US-brokered peace talks in Abu Dhabi.
A total of 157 Ukrainians - seven of them civilians - and 157 Russian soldiers were returned home in the first such swap in four months.
Russian, Ukrainian and US teams took part in the talks in the capital of the United Arab Emirates, with the main sticking points believed to be territorial concessions Ukraine is under pressure to make and security guarantees for it to prevent further Russian attacks if a deal is agreed to end the four-year war.
No breakthrough has been reported. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the talks had not been easy and he wanted faster results.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In a post on social media, Zelensky wrote that Thursday's prisoner exchange took place after a long pause - referring to the previous such swap last October.
Ukrainian officials said 139 had been in Russian captivity since 2022. The Russian defence ministry stated that 157 of its POWs were returned by Kyiv, including three Russian civilians.
The talks in Abu Dhabi are part of US President Donald Trump's efforts to end the war. Special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner have been leading the negotiations.
Despite claims of detailed and productive discussions, significant challenges remain to achieve a peace agreement, primarily regarding territorial issues and security guarantees sought by Kyiv from its allies.
