Russia and Ukraine have exchanged more captured soldiers, the Russian government has said, the latest in a series of prisoner swaps agreed at peace talks in Istanbul earlier this month.
The talks failed to make progress towards a ceasefire but both countries agreed to free more than 1,000 prisoners of war from each side - all wounded, ill or under 25 years old.
"A group of Russian servicemen was returned from the territory controlled by the Kyiv regime. In exchange, a group of Ukrainian prisoners of war was handed over," Russia's defence ministry said in a statement.
It said the Russian soldiers were currently in Belarus, which shares borders with both the warring countries.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that a new prisoner of war swap had taken place with Russia.
Most of the warriors returning today from Russian captivity had been held for over two years. And now, at last, they are home.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) June 20, 2025
These are defenders of Mariupol, Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv regions. Warriors of the Armed Forces, the National… pic.twitter.com/54bidDlCt2
He wrote on X: "Most of the warriors returning today from Russian captivity had been held for over two years. And now, at last, they are home.
"These are defenders of Mariupol, Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv regions."
"We are working to ensure that the exchanges continue until we bring everyone back," he added.
Neither side said how many soldiers had been freed in today's swap.
Moscow posted a video of Russian soldiers in military fatigues, chanting "Russia, Russia" with Russian flags draped over them.
The two sides have carried out dozens of such exchanges since the start of the conflict, in one of the only areas of dialogue between Moscow and Kyiv.
Two rounds of peace talks in Istanbul have failed to result in a pause to the fighting.
Russia has rejected calls for an unconditional ceasefire, vowing to press on with its three-year advance.
It is demanding Kyiv cede more territory and give up on Western military support as a precondition to a truce.
It comes as one person was killed and at least 14 were injured when Russian drones attacked the Ukrainian Black Sea city of Odesa overnight, damaging high-rise buildings and railway infrastructure.
Odesa is Ukraine's largest Black Sea port, key for imports and exports, and has been under constant missile and drone attacks by Russia since the war began.
"Despite the active work of air defence forces, there is damage to civilian infrastructure, including residential buildings, a higher education institution, a gas pipeline and private cars," local governor Oleh Kiper said on Telegram messenger.
Mr Kiper released photos of burning houses and charred high-rise buildings.
Local emergencies service said that during the attack there were at least 10 drone strikes on residential buildings, causing massive fires.
Ukraine's air force said Russia had launched 86 drones on Ukraine overnight.
The military noted its air defence units shot down 34 drones while another 36 drones were lost.
However, the military reported that drones hit eight locations.
Ukrainian state railways reported that Odesa railway station was damaged during the attack, with power wires and rails damaged.
Russian drones also attacked Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine overnight, damaging several private and multi-storey houses, Kharkiv officials said.
