ITAR-TASS via Reuters:
Russian state-owned arms exporting firm Rosoboronexport does not expect the latest European Union's sanctions over Ukraine to hurt its exports, Russian news agencies quoted the company's deputy head as saying on Friday.
"According to our forecasts and conclusions, and taking into account the task of import substitution, we are not expecting any significant impact of the new sanctions on our exports," Sergei Goreslavsky was quoted by state news agency Itar-Tass as saying.
More from our news desk on the exchange of prisoners:
Ukraine government forces and pro-Russian separatists have exchanged dozens of prisoners captured during fighting in eastern Ukraine, as part of a cease-fire agreement signed earlier this month.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said 36 servicemen were released early on September 12. He said 21 others had been released the day before.
Ukrainian forces handed over 31 rebels.
The prisoner exchange took place outside Donetsk, one of two separatist-held provincial capitals in eastern Ukraine.
Hundreds of people are believed to have been detained by both sides since the start of the conflict in April.
The two sides have repeatedly accused each other of delaying prisoner exchanges and violating the September 5 cease-fire deal.
And this case continues to rumble on:
The European Union has called for the "immediate release" of an Estonian policeman detained by Russia and charged with espionage.
An EU statement released on September 11 said, "We are concerned at the abduction on September 5 of Estonian police officer Eston Kohver by the Russian security services on Estonian territory."
Russia says Kohver was seized inside Russia on September 5, while Estonian officials say he was captured at gunpoint near the border and taken to Russia.
The EU said Russia's actions were "against international law and the principle of inviolability of borders."
Estonia's Foreign Ministry called the case "very disturbing" and summoned Russia's ambassador in Tallinn, Yury Merzlakov, for an explanation.
The U.S. State Department said on September 9 that Kohver should be "safely" and "immediately" returned to Estonia by Russian officials.
Good morning. Diplomacy news:
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will visit Canada and the United States next week.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's office said on September 11 that Poroshenko would be in Ottawa on September 17.
Poroshenko will meet with Harper and address the Canadian parliament where he is expected to thank Canada's 1.2 million people of Ukrainian descent for their support for Kyiv in its battle to reclaim the eastern part of the country from pro-Russian separatists.
Poroshenko will then travel on the United States where Congress has invited the Ukrainian leader to give an address on September 18.
That ends the live blogging for today.
More from our news desk on the U.S. sanctions:
U.S. President Barack Obama says the United States will announce fresh sanctions against Russia on September 12, citing the Kremlin’s “actions to further destabilize Ukraine over the last month.”
The measures targeting Russia’s financial, energy, and defense sectors “will increase Russia’s political isolation as well as the economic costs to Russia, especially in areas of importance to President Putin and those close to him,” Obama said in a September 11 statement.
The broadening of the sanctions are a response in part to “the presence of heavily armed Russian forces in eastern Ukraine,” Obama said.
Moscow has denied it is supporting pro-Russian separatists battling Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine.
“If Russia fully implements its commitments, these sanctions can be rolled back,” Obama said.
BREAKING: Obama unveils new sanctions against Russia over Ukraine.
WATCH: Senior Separatist Insists On Sovereignty For Donetsk
Aleksandr Karaman, the deputy prime minister of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic, says Kyiv's offer of a "special status" within Ukraine for the breakaway eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk is insufficient.