Ukraine’s Poroshenko Hints at Deal With Russia to Swap Pilot Savchenko

KIEV (Reuters) —

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said on Tuesday he had agreed with Russian President Vladimir Putin to a framework for a deal to secure the release of Ukrainian pilot Nadezhda Savchenko, currently serving a 22-year jail sentence in Russia.

The sentencing of two captured Russian servicemen in Ukraine on Monday fueled speculation that they might be swapped for Savchenko, 34, who was found guilty of involvement in the killing of two Russian journalists in 2014 during the separatist conflict. She has denied any involvement.

“Yesterday I initiated a conversation with Putin and, based on preliminary preparations, it seems to me we have managed to agree on a certain algorithm to free Nadezhda,” Poroshenko told journalists.

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