Russia announces preparation to return remains of 1,212 Ukrainian soldiers
(MENAFN) Russia has announced that it is prepared to return the remains of 1,212 deceased Ukrainian soldiers, the first group of over 6,000 bodies it has offered to repatriate as part of a unilateral humanitarian gesture agreed upon during recent talks in Istanbul.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the bodies have already been transported to a designated exchange point at the Belarus-Ukraine border. However, Ukrainian representatives did not appear at the site on Saturday as expected.
Lieutenant General Aleksandr Zorin, a member of the Russian negotiating team, confirmed Russia's readiness to uphold the agreement for both the return of the remains and the exchange of prisoners. He also warned that the handover might be delayed again, noting that Moscow is still waiting for confirmation from Kiev.
“This is not a political gesture but a purely humanitarian act,” Zorin emphasized, calling it one of many such efforts Russia has undertaken—and sadly, not the last.
Kiev claimed it had not agreed on the specific date for the transfer and accused Moscow of using the humanitarian gesture for propaganda purposes.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova condemned Ukraine’s refusal, stating that Kiev seems indifferent to its citizens, whether dead or alive. She accused the Ukrainian government of promoting a “misanthropic ideology” and committing “genocide” against its own population.
Meanwhile, Russian MP Dmitry Belik suggested that Ukraine’s reluctance to receive the bodies might be financially motivated, as declaring soldiers dead would obligate the state to compensate their families.
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