Ukraine war latest: First pictures of war's largest prisoner swap so far shared by Zelenskyy

Thank you for reading.

These are today's main developments:

• Russia and Ukraine have exchanged 270 prisoners and 120 civilians each;
• Volodymyr Zelenskyy said exchanges were expected to continue on Saturday and Sunday;
• The Vatican is not a suitable location to hold peace talks, Russia's foreign minister has said;
• Friedrich Merz, the new German chancellor, has asked Xi Jinping, the president of China, to help support peace efforts in Ukraine;
• Ukraine's ambassador to the UK has said Kyiv cannot hope to regain all the territory it has lost to Russia;
• A military helicopter has crashed in Russia's Oryol region, killing the crew, state news agency TASS reported.

In the latest episode of The World podcast, former GCHQ director Sir Jeremy Fleming joins lead world news presenter Yalda Hakim and NBC's Richard Engel for a wide-ranging conversation covering the war in Gaza, Donald Trump's foreign policy, the threat of China and the dangers of AI.

What does the former spy chief think will happen in the war in Ukraine? How close is a nuclear deal with Iran? What are the biggest threats to the UK's national security?

Sir Jeremy, who held the top role for six years before leaving in 2023, also answers questions from listeners on spies, cyber wars and who might be the next James Bond.

GCHQ, short for Government Communications Headquarters, is the UK's largest intelligence agency, focusing on counter terrorism, cyber security and international intelligence.

To get in touch or to share questions for Richard and Yalda, email theworld@sky.uk

Episodes of The World With Richard Engel And Yalda Hakim will be available every Wednesday on all podcast platforms.

Tap here to follow on your podcast app of choice.

Ukraine has released a short video of the prisoners of war released today.

As we've been reporting, Russia and Ukraine have exchanged 270 prisoners and 120 civilians each.

Ukraine's strategic command centre said all "returned individuals are now receiving medical care and support on Ukrainian territory".

It added: "This marks one of the largest exchanges in recent months and reinforces Ukraine's principle: no defender will be forgotten.

"President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine continues to uphold its commitments and will not rest until every captive is brought home."

Watch the video via the X post below...

A military helicopter has crashed in Russia's Oryol region, killing the crew, state news agency TASS reported.

It happened near the village of Naryshkino, the agency added, citing Moscow military district headquarters.

The preliminary cause of the crash is said to be a technical malfunction.

There were no civilian casualties, regional governor Andrei Klychkov said on Telegram.

Fire crews were at the scene.

The head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office says Russia has been producing a "lot of loud words" but none of them "envisage a ceasefire" and an end to the war.

Andriy Yermak also said Russian threats are "like an old record".

He added: "It plays the same thing. And the quality is appropriate - boring and somehow Soviet."

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the first stage of a "1000-for-1000" prisoner swap has been completed.

"We are bringing our people home," he said on X.

"Today – 390 people. On Saturday and Sunday, we expect the exchange to continue."

As we said in a previous post, both Ukraine and Russia have exchanged 270 prisoners and 120 civilians each.

The Ukrainian leader said "every surname, every detail about each person" is being verified.

"We will continue our diplomatic efforts to make such steps possible."

By Ivor Bennett, Moscow correspondent

The Moscow metro is a sight to behold.

The gilded interiors of its cavernous stations have the opulence of a baroque palace.

But amid the mosaics and chandeliers, there is a new monument turning heads - a life-sized statue of Joseph Stalin.

The Soviet dictator was responsible for the deaths of millions of innocent people, in purges, famines and his infamous gulag labour camps.

But there's no mention of that on the new sculpture at the central Taganskaya station.

Instead, he's depicted as a leader who was loved by his people - a crowd of adoring workers and their children are reaching out towards him in adoration.

It was described as a "gift" to passengers by the capital's metro system to mark its 90th anniversary.

Keep reading by clicking below...

Russia has handed 270 prisoners of war and 120 civilians back to Ukraine, the Russian defence ministry said.

In reply, 270 Russian military personnel and 120 civilians, including some from the Kursk region captured by Ukrainian armed forces, have been returned.

The Russians, both military and civilian, are in Belarus, the ministry added.

Exchanges are expected to continue over the coming days.

The freed Russians will be taken back to Russia for treatment and rehabilitation, the ministry said.

As we have been reporting, a prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine is said to be under way.

The Kremlin said yesterday it had handed a list of names to Ukraine, involving 1,000 prisoners from each side.

These photographs, from the Chernihiv region of Ukraine, show prisoners' family members, hoping their loved ones will be part of the swap.

Beyond Ukraine, Poland says its air force intercepted a Russian jet last night. 

Wladysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, the Polish minister of national defence, said today that the Russian SU-24 aircraft had been "performing dangerous manoeuvres".

He added that the order to intercept the aircraft was issued by the joint operational command for NATO allied forces in Europe.

Polish jets located the aircraft, intercepted it and effectively deterred it, Kosiniak-Kamysz said.

He did not give further details, according to Reuters.