Russia returns 1,000 bodies of Ukrainian soldiers for identification
1,000 fallen Ukrainian soldiers repatriated from Russia (photo: t.me/Koord_shtab)
Russia has returned to Ukraine another 1,000 bodies that, according to the Russian side, belong to Ukrainian servicemen. Experts from the Ministry of Internal Affairs are already preparing to conduct examinations and identification of the repatriated remains, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War reported.
Investigators from law enforcement agencies, together with experts from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, will soon carry out all the necessary examinations and identify the repatriated bodies.
The repatriation was made possible through the joint work of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the Joint Center under the Security Service of Ukraine, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Office of the Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's parliament) Commissioner for Human Rights, the Secretariat of the Commissioner for Persons Missing under Special Circumstances, the State Emergency Service, and other structures of Ukraine's Security and Defense Sector.
The Headquarters expressed special gratitude to the International Committee of the Red Cross (a humanitarian organization that helps victims of armed conflicts and ensures compliance with international humanitarian law) for its assistance.
"Special thanks go to the personnel of the Central Office of the Civil-Military Cooperation Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Joint Center for Civil-Military Cooperation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which carries out the transportation of repatriated bodies to designated state specialized institutions, organizes their transfer to representatives of law enforcement agencies within the Ministry of Internal Affairs system, and to forensic medical experts within the Ministry of Health system," the Headquarters added.
Return of the fallen soldiers
Ukraine and Russia reached an agreement during negotiations in Istanbul on the repatriation of the bodies of fallen soldiers in a 6,000 for 6,000 exchange ratio.
The first stage took place on June 11, when Ukraine received 1,212 bodies of defenders who died in the east and south of the country, as well as in the Kursk region. On June 13, another 1,200 bodies were returned, including Ukrainian service members. The next day, June 14, an additional 1,200 bodies were repatriated, and on August 19, another 1,000.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that the Russian side often deliberately complicates the identification process by transferring bodies in severely damaged condition. At the same time, the return of the fallen remains one of Ukraine's most important and challenging missions.
After each repatriation, specialists carry out comprehensive identification procedures — forensic examinations, autopsies, DNA analyses, and data matching — to establish the identity of each fallen individual.
The most recent exchange took place on September 18, when Ukraine recovered from Russia the bodies of another 1,000 deceased citizens, including service members.
