Russia, Ukraine swap 50 POWs as a part of prison release deal amid war

Russia and Ukraine on Sunday, Jan 8 exchanged 50 Prisoners of War (POWs) implementing the deal that was welcomed by both sides. In a statement, Russia's defense ministry [MoD] announced that 50 captured soldiers returned to their home country, and were flown to Moscow for medical and psychological rehabilitation. Ukraine's defense ministry, meanwhile, confirmed that Russia released 50 Ukrainian soldiers as a part of the agreed deal for swapping the POWs. The Ukrainian side shared images on Twitter showing the released Ukrainian soldiers holding bags of food near a bus. A visual of them singing the Ukrainian national anthem went viral. 

"On January 8, as a result of negotiations, 50 Russian servicemen, who were in mortal danger while in captivity, were returned from the territory controlled by the Kyiv regime," Russia's MoD said in a statement. 

"Another successful POWs (prisoners of war) swap. 50 Ukrainian soldiers are back," Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian presidential office said on Twitter. "To be continued. We must bring all our people home, and we are on it," he furthermore added. 

Zelenskyy warns Russia will 'throw everything to turn war around'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this week warned that Russia is planning to escalate its military aggression across the Ukrainian territories, and will "throw everything they have" to turn around the war. In a nightly address, Zelenskyy stated, "We have to disrupt this Russian scenario. We are preparing for this." Furthermore, he insisted that pushing back on the Russian upcoming planned offensive will be the "final defeat" in the war that has dragged on for 10 months.

Ukrainian troops are continuing their offensive to the east into Donetsk, as the battle between the Russian forces and Ukraine's army have intensified over the last few months after Russia's major territorial losses in Kharkiv and Kherson oblasts. Zelesnkyy, in his address, did not elaborate on the preemptive defensive measures Ukrainian forces were planning to take against the major offensive Moscow is suspected to launch in 2023. The latter is planning full-scale mobilisation to the war following the death of 89 Russian troops in the Ukrainian strike on the vocational college that was used as the temporary army barrack in Makiivka.