Russia and Ukraine discussed further prisoner swaps on Wednesday at a brief session of peace talks in Istanbul, but the sides remained far apart on ceasefire terms and a possible meeting of their leaders.

Vasily Astrov, expert on the Russian economy at the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, told Newsweek that "inflation has really subsided markedly over the past few months. The outcome of this policy has been a marked cooling of domestic demand, with the welcome side effect of rapid disinflation.

The long-range Russian drones come in swarms each night, buzzing over Ukraine by the hundreds, terrorizing the population and attacking targets from the industrial east to areas near its western border with Poland.

Chinese-made engines are being covertly shipped via front companies to a state-owned drone manufacturer in Russia, labelled as "industrial refrigeration units" to avoid detection in the wake of Western sanctions,

Russia has advanced around Pokrovsk for many months, but has so far failed to entirely encircle or seize control of the city.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has renewed his call for direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end their ongoing war.

Ukraine brought home a new group of prisoners of war from Russia on Wednesday, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said, saying it brought to more than 1,000 the number of returning soldiers as agreed at talks in Turkey.

Anti-corruption protests target Zelensky in Kyiv ahead of crucial peace talks - Kyiv’s attack on powers of anti-corruption agencies branded ‘serious step back’ for country’s EU membership