Russia and Ukraine say they have exchanged captured soldiers - the first swap since the crash of a Russian plane that Moscow claimed had 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war (PoWs) on board, writes BBC.

Russia’s military says each side got 195 soldiers back on Wednesday. Ukraine’s President says 207 Ukrainian soldiers were returned.

This exchange is the 50th PoW swap since President Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In a brief statement, the Russian defence ministry said the exchange was completed after negotiations: “The released military personnel will be transported by military transport aircraft... to Moscow for treatment and rehabilitation”.

Volodymyr Zelensky wrote in a post on social media: “Our people are back. 207 of them. We return them home no matter what. We remember every Ukrainian in captivity. Both warriors and civilians. We must bring all of them back”.