Europe

MOSCOW, September 7. /TASS/: The special aircraft of Rossiya flight unit Tu-204 carrying Russian citizens released within the prisoner swap has landed in Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport.

The aircraft landed in Vnukovo-2 at 1:26 p.m. Moscow time, TASS correspondent reports.

Also the special aircraft carrying Ukrainian citizens released within the prisoner swap landed at the Boryspil International Airport on Saturday.

MOSCOW, September 7. /TASS/: The state trials of Russia’s modernized air tanker, Il-78MD-90A, will be over in 2021, an aircraft industry source has told TASS.

"Last year, we finished building a test model of the air tanker, which is now undergoing the manufacturer’s flight tests. In 2021, we expect to complete state trials and receive the 01 status [giving the green light to the start of serial production]," the source said. "We are taking all measures to speed up the process."

At present, the aircraft has performed about a dozen out of 73 scheduled test flights.

MANZHEROK /Altai Republic/, September 7. /TASS/: The transaction between Sberbank and Mail.ru Group that are currently setting up a joint venture, is to be closed by the end of the year, Chief Executive Officer of Russia’s top lender Herman Gref told reporters on Saturday.

"In terms of timing, the deal is to be closed by the end of the year, no earlier than November, in November or December," he said.

MOSCOW, September 7. /TASS/: The mutual return of Ukrainian and Russian citizens has been conducted, Russian Human Rights Ombudsperson Tatyana Moskalkova said on Saturday.

"Today we can finally say safely that the mutual return of Ukrainian and Russian citizens has been conducted," she said.

The swap was based on the ‘35 for 35’ formula, Moskalkova said. "35 people from one side and 35 people - from the other," she said.

MOSCOW, September 7. /TASS/: The pre-election silence day, during which all campaigning is prohibited, began in Russia ahead of the single voting day of September 8.

On Sunday, elections of various levels will take place in all Russian regions.

The election blackout begins in every region at midnight local time on Saturday, September 7. All kinds of campaigning, including party events and rallies, handout of leaflets and political advertising on TV and radio are prohibited.

MOSCOW, September 7. /TASS/: The reentry capsule of Russia’s Soyuz MS-14 manned spacecraft with no crew but an anthropomorphic robot on board landed in the designated area in steppes of Kazaskhtan on Saturday.

"Landing done," said a spokesperson for the central research and development institute of machine building (TsNIIMash), which incorporates the Russian Mission Control Center.

A search team has already discovered the landing site, a mission control center official said on Friday in a conversation with Russian cosmonauts.

Kiev, Sep 7 (AFP) A long-awaited swap of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine was underway on Saturday, sources and state media said, with 70 people involved in the landmark exchange.

A Ukrainian government source told AFP the swap was proceeding and that 35 people on each side would be exchanged.

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said an exchange of prisoners with Russia on Saturday was the first step in a process to end the conflict in Ukraine’s Donbass region.

He said the swap had been agreed with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, and that he hoped for a meeting in the so-called “Normandy Format” with Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany soon to help defuse the war with pro-Russian separatists.

He said all steps had to be taken “to finish this horrible war,” referring to the conflict with pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.

LONDON (Reuters) - British lawmakers are preparing legal action in case Prime Minister Boris Johnson tries to defy legislation compelling him to seek a further delay to Brexit, the BBC reported on Saturday.

An opposition bill which would force Johnson to ask the European Union for an extension to Britain’s departure to avoid a no-deal exit on Oct. 31 was approved by parliament’s appointed upper chamber, the House of Lords, on Friday.

Queen Elizabeth is expected to sign it into law on Monday.

PARIS (Reuters) - France will continue efforts to bring Iran into full compliance with a 2015 nuclear deal, French defense minister Florence Parly said, adding that U.S. and European moves to strengthen security in the Gulf must be “complementary and well coordinated”.

“We can only confirm our goal, which is to bring Iran to fully respect the Vienna deal,” Parly told a news conference on Saturday with U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper in Paris.

“We must do everything we can to contribute to ease tensions with Iran and to ensure navigation safety,” she added.