Here's a Ukraine item from our news desk. Poroshenko is building bridges in Central Asia, it seems:
Visiting Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and his Turkmen counterpart Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov have vowed to boost bilateral cooperation in various sectors, including energy ties.
After talks in the Turkmen capital, Ashgabat, on October 29, Poroshenko called Turkmen-Ukrainian relations "historic and strategic" and expressed his confidence that ties between the two former Soviet countries will continue to develop.
Poroshenko added that he expects Berdymukhammedov to come to Kyiv on an official visit in the first half of 2016.
Berdymukhammedov said his country "is ready to boost energy deliveries" to Ukraine, also stressing the importance of developing Kyiv-Ashgabat cooperation in the energy and transportation sectors.
Turkmenistan owns the world's fourth-biggest reserves of natural gas.
Ukraine has faced problems with natural-gas deliveries from Russia amid a souring of relations over the Kremlin's annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in March 2014 and the ongoing conflict between Russian-backed separatists and Ukrainian armed forces in eastern Ukraine.
(UNIAN, Interfax)
Nine captured Ukrainian servicemen have been freed in an exchange of prisoners in the Donbas region, President Petro Poroshenko wrote on Facebook.
"Good news, friends, -- nine Ukrainian Heroes were released from captivity today. Glory to Ukraine!" his post reads.
Media outlets from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DNR), which is controlled by Russian-backed separatists, also wrote about the successful prisoner exchange. The DNR received 11 of its fighters from Ukraine.
Russia's Black Sea Fleet has been holding military exercises off the Crimean coast, and Reuters has this video of proceedings:
