Russia and Ukraine have conducted a major exchange of prisoners. Each side has released 103 people.

This is the third round of prisoner exchanges that the two countries have carried out, since Ukraine started launching attacks across the border in Kursk on August 6.

Each side released a total of 267 prisoners during the first two rounds.

On Saturday, Russia's Defense Ministry said that 103 Russian servicemen had been returned from the territory that is controlled by the Kyiv regime. The men were captured in the western Russian region of Kursk.

Ukrainian forces have been carrying out attacks across the border in Kursk.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post that 103 more soldiers had been returned to Ukraine from Russia's territory.

In the meantime, Russia's Defense Ministry announced on Saturday that its troops seized a village near Pokrovsk, which is a key strategic city in the eastern region of Donetsk.

A US think-tank, the Institute for the Study of War, said on Friday that the rate of Russia's "advance in the Pokrovsk area has notably slowed since the start of September."

Zelenskyy also stressed on Friday that the strikes by Ukraine's forces across the border in Kursk have slowed the advance of the Russian military in Donetsk.