Russia has confirmed that it has handed over the bodies of dead Ukrainian servicemen to Ukraine. This was reported to RBC by State Duma deputy Shamsail Saraliyev, a representative of the parliamentary coordination group on military operations, BTA reports.
The Ukrainian Coordination Headquarters for Prisoners of War reported that a total of 1,212 bodies of dead soldiers have been returned to the country. The exchange was carried out in accordance with the agreements reached during the second round of direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, held on June 2 in Istanbul.
Among the returned bodies are those of servicemen who died in various regions, including the Kursk region in Russia, as well as in the Kharkiv, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Kherson regions in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian authorities stated that an identification procedure would begin shortly, which would be carried out through joint work between investigators and expert teams of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The Russian side pointed out that Moscow had insisted that Ukraine accept the first batch of bodies as early as June 7 and 8, but Kiev initially refused. The Ukrainian side subsequently confirmed their acceptance.
In addition to the exchange of bodies of the dead, the Istanbul agreement also provides for a phased exchange of prisoners of war - with priority for the wounded, seriously injured and fighters under the age of 25.