Ukraine Frees Putin Ally in Swap Deal for Hundreds of Troops
- Viktor Medvedchuk was part of exchange for 215 Ukrainians
- Turkey, Saudi Arabia were involved in prisoner exchange talks
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Ukraine handed over a key ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin in exchange for hundreds of prisoners of war including many captured in a landmark battle, a swap that outraged pro-Kremlin propagandists.
Viktor Medvedchuk was one of 55 people turned over to Russia in return for 215 prisoners, including 188 who held out for months against Russian assault at the Azovstal steel plant in the port city of Mariupol early in the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a statement late Wednesday. Among them were 108 members of the Azov brigade that Kremlin officials have long cast as “Nazis” destined for prosecution in their efforts to justify Putin’s invasion.