KYIV: On Tuesday, Russia announced that it has returned the bodies of 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers, with five of these individuals having died while in captivity, according to a Ukrainian government agency.
In return, Ukraine has sent back the bodies of 19 Russian soldiers, as reported by a Russian official.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, both sides have faced heavy losses, with tens of thousands of soldiers having been killed. However, neither country regularly shares information about their casualties.
One of the few areas where some cooperation exists between the two nations is in the repatriation of prisoners of war and the exchange of deceased soldiers. Recently, both sides have stepped up these efforts, particularly during discussions held in Istanbul.
In a statement on Telegram, Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War confirmed that “1,000 bodies belonging to Ukrainian military personnel have been returned to Ukraine.” They also noted that among those returned, five were soldiers who had died in captivity. The agency mentioned that law enforcement will start the process of identifying the soldiers.
This exchange occurred based on agreements made during negotiations in Istanbul, as stated by Russian negotiator Vladimir Medinsky. Initially, Kyiv indicated plans to exchange the bodies of 6,000 Ukrainian soldiers for an equal number from Russia, while Moscow has consistently portrayed the return as a unilateral decision to repatriate Ukrainian soldiers.
