Russian forces have advanced into Dnipropetrovsk and Sumy regions, in fresh bid for Ukrainian land beyond what Moscow's already annexed.

Russia and Ukraine said they exchanged an unspecified number of sick and wounded prisoners of war on Tuesday under an agreement reached at peace talks last week in Turkey.

Russia claimed Sunday that its forces are for the first time pushing into the central Ukrainian region of Dnipropetrovsk, an area it has been trying to reach for months, in a move that could create new problems for Kyiv’s much-stretched forces.

Israel walked back a statement after Michael Brodsky, its ambassador to Ukraine, said Kyiv was getting the weapons.

Russia said on Monday that its forces had taken control of more territory in Ukraine's east-central region of Dnipropetrovsk, where the Kremlin said fighting was partly aimed at creating a "buffer zone.

A new prisoner swap between Ukraine and Russia has begun, officials in both countries said Monday, with Ukrainian soldiers who have spent nearly the entire duration of the war in captivity among those returning home.

Russian officials said Sunday that Moscow is still awaiting official confirmation from Ukraine that a planned exchange of 6,000 bodies of soldiers killed in action will take place, reiterating