Russia hands over bodies of 1,245 more fallen defenders to Ukraine
Photo: Bodies of 1245 killed in action Ukrainian soldiers returned to Ukraine (t.me/Koord_shtab)
Another batch of 1,245 more soldiers killed in battle were returned to Ukraine, which, according to the Russian side, belong to Ukrainian citizens, including military personnel, Ukrainian Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War reports.
This was the final stage of the repatriation agreements reached in Istanbul. In total, 6,057 bodies of fallen Ukrainian soldiers were returned to Ukraine under this agreement.
According to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the bodies will be identified with the participation of experts from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine and law enforcement. The necessary examinations and DNA identification are planned.
Who was involved
The operation was implemented thanks to the joint work of the Security Service of Ukraine, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, the Office of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights of Ukraine, the Secretariat of the Commissioner for Missing Persons of Ukraine, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, as well as other security and defense structures.
Specialists of the Central Department of Civil-Military Cooperation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Joint Center for Civil-Military Cooperation played a special role.
They organized the transportation of bodies to specialized institutions and the transfer of the dead for forensic examinations.
The International Committee of the Red Cross, which is involved in humanitarian operations related to the war in Ukraine, also participated in their implementation.
Minister of Defense of Ukraine Rustem Umerov also announced the completion of the last stage of repatriation of the bodies of fallen defenders under the Istanbul agreements.
"We do not stop. The next stage is ahead: we continue to fight for the return of prisoners," the Ukrainian Defense Minister emphasized.
Return of the bodies of fallen Ukrainian defenders
Agreements on a large-scale exchange of bodies of fallen defenders were reached on June 2 during the second round of talks between Ukraine and Russia in Istanbul. The parties agreed on a 6000-for-6000 format.
The first stage of the exchange took place on June 11, when Ukraine returned the bodies of 1,212 fallen soldiers, including those killed in the east, south, and Kursk region.
Another wave of repatriation took place on June 13, when the bodies of 1,200 people, most of them military personnel, were returned to Ukraine.
In addition, the bodies of another 1,200 fallen Ukrainian defenders were returned to Ukraine on Sunday, June 15. This is the fourth stage of repatriation activities after the talks in Istanbul.
