From ducklings hatching to the POWs being released 
I still cannot believe that Ukraine got so many of their POWs back. Wonderful that British POWs Aiden Aslin, Shaun Pinner, US POWs and others were also released. This news still makes me happy and relieved.
Although reputation rehabilitation probably played a role in the brokers' motivation, it is still amazing that they persevered and succeeded. Abramovich is looking good.
www.wsj.com/articles/saudi-crown-prince-roman-abramovich-played-role-in-russia-ukraine-prisoner-swap-11663970979?page=1
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Roman Abramovich Played Role in Russia-Ukraine Prisoner Swap
Agreement that freed more than 250 prisoners, brokered by Turkey and Saudi Arabia, took months to negotiate
... Mr. Abramovich personally accompanied 10 prisoners, including British and American detainees captured by Russia in Ukraine, onto a private jet that took them to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from Russia earlier this week, Saudi officials said. Other people familiar with the situation confirmed Mr. Abramovich’s involvement.
... The unusual cast of characters involved in the agreement shows how Ukraine is reaching beyond its traditional partners to secure diplomatic breakthroughs when Ukrainian forces are making gains against Russia on the battlefield.
Saudi Arabia’s involvement was perhaps the most surprising aspect of the exchange, which was also brokered by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Until the prisoner negotiations, the Saudi kingdom played little role in any diplomacy surrounding the Russia-Ukraine war, as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has drawn closer to Russia in recent years.
“Our aim is to save people, and we needed a country who is strong and independent with leverage over our northern neighbor,” said Rustem Umerov, a Ukrainian negotiator who was involved in the prisoner swap. “We shared the risks by separating the tracks. For foreign POWs, we cooperated with Saudi Arabia, and Ukrainian POWs, we cooperated with Turkey.”
... Mr. Abramovich, the former owner of Chelsea Football Club, has acted as a backchannel between Russia and Ukraine since the early days of the war, showing up during peace negotiations in Istanbul and helping to negotiate a deal in July that unlocked Ukraine’s Black Sea grain exports, according to officials and others familiar with the talks. He also played a central role in the prisoner negotiations, said Mr. Umerov.
“He facilitated all the POW-exchange matters with Russian officials, including different agencies and ministries and contributed to their release effort,” said Mr. Umerov, who is the special envoy of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky.
... Prince Mohammed was personally involved in the negotiations, Saudi and American officials said.
... Ukrainian officials said they initially pushed to release a group of 50 prisoners of war, but through diplomacy unlocked a deal for even more.
“It was cooked for a very long, long time,” Mr. Umerov said of the deal. “Until the last person crossed the border, there was such huge tension.”