Ukraine's govt., pro-Russian forces exchange hundreds of prisoners

PanARMENIAN.Net - Ukraine's government and pro-Russian forces on Friday, Dec 26, exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war while Kiev said it would suspend all train and bus service to Crimea, effectively creating a transportation blockade to and from the region, Reuters reports.

The agreement to swap 150 Ukrainian servicemen for 222 rebels followed peace talks between envoys of Ukraine, Russia, the separatists and European security watchdog Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on Wednesday.

"The head of the SBU (security service) reported the release of 146 Ukrainians to the President. The SBU expects another four prisoners to be released tomorrow. They will all be able to celebrate New Year ... with their families," Svyatoslav Tsegolko, a spokesman for President Petro Poroshenko, said in a Facebook post.

Crimea is controlled by Russia, but its only land link is with Ukraine and it has remained dependent on the Ukrainian mainland for most of its supplies, including much of its electricity and water. Ukraine already has banned sea and air traffic with Crimea, which is still serviced by Russian airlines.

Other road transportation including passenger cars and trucks will still be allowed to travel into and out of Crimea.

In addition, Visa Inc and MasterCard Inc, the world's two largest credit and debit card companies, said they could no longer support bank cards being used in Crimea following U.S. sanctions imposed earlier this month.

The United States last Friday prohibited U.S.-registered companies from investing in Crimea or providing services to companies operating there.