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The Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, has congratulated leaders of the Azov Battalion, who were freed in a prisoner swap late on Wednesday. The fighters, who held out for weeks in the steelworks in Mariupol before being captured, are heroes in Ukraine. They were released by Russia as part of an exchange which saw the return of more than 200 prisoners of war.

Alexander Khara is a fellow of the Centre of Defence Strategies in Kyiv and a former adviser to the minister of defence. He told Newsday, 鈥淣egotiations have been ongoing for quite a while. The Turkish government was playing an important role鈥�I was surprised that Saudi Arabia was involved in them talks as well because they didn鈥檛 play any significant role in any negotiations with Russia so far.鈥�

(Photo: Russia and Ukraine exchanged 270 prisoners of war on 21 September, 2022. Credit: Security Service of Ukraine/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images.)