[ti:Ukraine, Pro-Russian Forces Trade Prisoners to Mark the New Year] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:01.56]Ukraine and pro-Russian separatist rebels [00:05.64]had the largest exchange of prisoners on Wednesday [00:09.52]since the start of the conflict in 2014. [00:14.48]The exchange allowed hundreds of former prisoners [00:18.16]to return home ahead of the New Year and Orthodox Christmas. [00:24.92]More than 10,000 people have died in the war. [00:29.52]Reports of deaths and injuries continued daily this year [00:34.48]despite a ceasefire in 2015. [00:38.84]The mother of a Ukrainian prisoner [00:41.11]received a call from her son Oleksandr Oliynyk. [00:45.96]He said, "Mum, I'm already here." [00:49.96]She told a Ukrainian news channel, [00:53.08]"You cannot imagine what it means for a mother, [00:56.80]to not see your child for three-and-a-half years, [01:00.84]since August 2014." [01:04.60]The Ukrainian government in Kiev [01:07.00]agreed to hand over 306 prisoners to the pro-Russian rebels [01:13.60]and to receive 74 prisoners in return. [01:18.80]Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko confirmed on social media [01:24.56]"All 74 Ukrainian hostages are already at home, [01:29.60]on the territory controlled by our army." [01:34.36]Poroshenko added that among the prisoners handed to Ukraine [01:38.84]were a historian and a "cyborg" [01:42.42]- the nickname Ukrainians gave to soldiers [01:45.68]who defended Donetsk airport [01:48.44]in one of the conflict's most intense battles in 2014. [01:54.72]The exact number of prisoners returned to rebel-held territory is unclear. [02:00.65]Viktor Medvedchuk is Ukraine's representative to ongoing peace talks. [02:07.76]He told the Russian news agency TASS [02:10.88]that some captives refused to return. [02:15.40]TASS reported that Medvedchuk also expected more exchanges in 2018. [02:23.92]The Ukrainian state security service [02:26.84]said 103 prisoners remained in separatist hands. [02:32.96]The exchange came as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson [02:37.92]asked Russia to "lower the level of violence" in eastern Ukraine. [02:44.32]Russian officials in Moscow did not comment on the exchange. [02:50.00]Ukraine and its Western allies say the Russian government [02:54.84]supports the pro-Russian separatists with troops, cash, and heavy weapons. [03:02.00]Moscow denies the claim. [03:05.24]German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron [03:11.88]welcomed the exchange in a joint statement. [03:15.60]They said both sides should release the remaining captives. [03:21.12]Germany's foreign ministry said it was an important step [03:25.52]in acting on the ceasefire agreement agreed in the Belarus capital Minsk. [03:33.96]The agreement was signed by Ukraine, [03:36.52]Russia, Germany, and France in early 2015. [03:42.16]"Above all, it is also an important humanitarian gesture [03:47.12]before the New Year and Orthodox Christmas," [03:50.96]a foreign ministry statement said. [03:54.44]I'm Jill Robbins. [03:56.72]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM