Russia sends its own dead soldiers during body exchange - Ukraine's Interior Minister
Photo: Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Ihor Klymenko (Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine)
Russia has handed over the bodies of its dead soldiers to Ukraine during a war dead exchange, passing them off as fallen Ukrainian troops. At least one such case has been documented and confirmed, stated Ukraine's Minister of Internal Affairs, Ihor Klymenko.
According to Klymenko, during the most recent body exchange, Russian representatives deliberately included not only deceased Ukrainian soldiers but also the corpses of Russian troops. Ukraine managed to identify some of the bodies.
"Yes, we have evidence. We have established the names of these soldiers and officers, unwanted by the motherland," Klymenko said.
One such case involved body No. 192/25, which turned out to be dressed in a Russian military uniform. Items found on the body included:
-
a Russian passport issued to Aleksandr Viktorovich Bugayev, born in 1974;
-
a Russian military ID indicating service in the 1st Battalion of the 39th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade;
-
a Russian Armed Forces military certificate;
-
an excerpt from Order No. 52 issued by the commander of military unit 35390, dated December 26, 2023;
-
and a dog tag marked "ВС РОССИИ МТ-146004" (Russian Armed Forces)
The family of Bugayev has been searching for him since March 2025. He went missing during battles near Novomykhailivka in the Donetsk region. Russian forces found his body, but instead of returning it to his relatives, they planted it among the remains handed over to Ukraine.
"This is yet more proof of how Russia treats its own people - with contempt, mixing their bodies in with those of fallen Ukrainian soldiers. It shows how little value Russia places on human life. Or perhaps it's just a way to avoid paying compensation to families. But they'll still have to pay - we are returning these bodies," said Ihor Klymenko.
The minister added that Russia's behavior reveals its true attitude toward both its soldiers and their families.
Return of fallen Ukrainian defenders
During their second meeting in Istanbul, Ukraine and Russia agreed to a large-scale exchange of war dead in a 6000 for 6000 format. On June 11, as part of the first phase, over a thousand bodies of fallen Ukrainian soldiers were returned, most of whom died in eastern Ukraine and the Kursk region.
The next phase of repatriation took place on June 13, with the return of 1,200 more bodies, most of them military personnel. On June 15, Ukraine received another 1,200 bodies of the fallen.
Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly lied about the process during a press conference at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2025. He claimed that Russia had handed over 6,000 bodies to Ukraine while receiving only 57 dead Russians in return.
