Russia hands over 1,200 bodies of Ukrainian troops, Ukraine does not
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Russia has returned 1,200 bodies of Ukrainian soldiers to Kiev under the Istanbul agreement. No Russian remains were handed over in return, the source says.
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In this photo, taken from a video released by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on June 12, 2025, servicemen walk from a plane as they return from a prisoner of war exchange between Russia and Ukraine, at an airport outside Moscow. (AP)
Russia has transferred an additional 1,200 bodies of Ukrainian armed forces personnel to Kiev, a source from the Russian negotiation group told RIA Novosti on Saturday.
The transfer was carried out in accordance with agreements reached in Istanbul, as part of ongoing humanitarian coordination between the two sides. "In accordance with the agreements reached in Istanbul, Russia handed over 1,200 bodies of soldiers of the Ukrainian armed forces to Ukraine today," the source stated.
⚡️ Russia has handed over another 1,200 bodies of fallen Ukrainian soldiers to Ukraine, a source told Sputnik.
— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) June 14, 2025
Ukraine has not handed over a single body to Russia on Saturday, the source added.
A parity prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine is taking place on Saturday.… pic.twitter.com/1dbmRvwtud
This follows a similar handover of 1,200 bodies conducted on Friday, bringing the total over two days to 2,400.
However, the source noted that Ukraine has not returned any remains of Russian soldiers in exchange. The asymmetry in the body repatriations was not explained further.
Meanwhile, a parity prisoner exchange is currently underway between Russia and Ukraine, the source added, as both sides continue to negotiate through established channels.
🚨🇷🇺MORE RUSSIAN WARRIORS RETURN TO MOTHERLAND FROM UKRAINE CAPTIVITY
— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) June 14, 2025
The video was published by the Russian Defense Ministry. https://t.co/2EqzFHMG17 pic.twitter.com/M8wOj6Ngq5
Exchange agreement initiated on June 2
Last Saturday, Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to President Vladimir Putin and head of the Russian delegation in talks with Ukraine, announced that Russia had initiated the process of returning more than 6,000 Ukrainian bodies and was prepared to conduct a parallel POW exchange.
However, during the first exchange, Ukraine did not show up at the agreed-upon location for the POW and body exchange agreement with Russia, which both sides reached during the latest round of talks in Istanbul.
"The Ukrainian side did not arrive at the exchange site, although the date had been announced in advance," Medinsky said, referring to arrangements made during the June 2 negotiations in Istanbul.
The Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova condemned Ukraine's move, claiming that a generational curse will befall the Ukrainian authorities should they fail to recover the bodies of Kiev's soldiers.
The Russian Security Council deputy chairman, Dmitry Medvedev, published a scathing criticism on X, saying that "The Kiev bastards don't want to take the bodies of their dead soldiers," and emphasizing that Ukraine did not receive the bodies out of fear of admitting their losses and wanting to avoid compensating their families.
Read more: Kremlin warns Ukraine may lose more land without peace deal
