Ukraine and Russia have swapped 95 prisoners of war each amid the war, officials from both countries said Wednesday, as part of occasional agreements to send troops home. The last swap took place three weeks ago.

Ukrainian President and Russian Defense Ministry gave information

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Russian Defense Ministry reported the exchange. It was the 54th swap of prisoners of war since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Zelensky said in a Telegram messaging post that officials from warring countries only meet after long preparations and diplomacy when they swap their dead and prisoners of war. Neither Ukraine nor Russia discloses how many prisoners of war there are in total.

UAE again mediated: Zelensky

Zelensky said the United Arab Emirates had again brokered the deal. The UAE has said it maintains friendly relations with both Moscow and Kiev.

Ukraine's entry into NATO would be like a declaration of war: Russia

Ukraine's joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) would not only be a direct threat to Russia but a delayed declaration of war. Russia is not a threat to NATO. It has no plans to attack NATO member countries and certainly does not aim to harm residents, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev was quoted as saying.