Russia and Ukraine conducted the largest prisoner of war exchange of the war to date on Wednesday, with around 1,000 soldiers from each side swapped.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called on President Xi Jinping to support a joint US-European push to achieve a ceasefire in Ukraine, in his first phone call with the Chinese leader on Friday.

At a key meeting in Brussels, EU defence and foreign ministers are prioritising Ukraine, with a focus on securing a ceasefire through increased US pressure on Russia.

Putin said efforts to end the war were "generally on the right track" and that Moscow was ready to work with Ukraine on a potential peace deal.

Donald Trump is holding crunch talks with Vladimir Putin today to speed up ceasefire efforts ... as he intensified his efforts ahead of Trump's call with Putin. Russia has banned human rights ...

President Trump has backed away from his demand for an immediate cease-fire between Ukraine and Russia ... Biden administration placed on Russia, in a broad effort to degrade Russia’s war ...

The nighttime Russian attack that stretched into early Saturday came hours after Russia and Ukraine began a major prisoner exchange.

Zelensky says Putin makes ‘mockery of entire world’ as historic prisoner swap continues - The Ukrainian president said 390 prisoners were returned on Friday, with more to follow over the weekend