Kiev Postpone Exchange With Russia, Leaves Bodies Of 6,000 Slain Ukrainian Troops In Trucks (Videos)

Illustrative image.

Ukraine has indefinitely postponed the acceptance of bodies and the exchange of prisoners of war agreed on during recent talks in Turkey, Russian Presidential Aide Vladimir Medinsky, who heads Moscow’s delegation to the talks with Ukraine, said on June 7.

“On June 6, in strict accordance with the Istanbul agreements, Russia unilaterally launched a humanitarian mission to hand over 6,000 bodies of Ukrainian service members over to Ukraine, as well as exchange wounded and seriously ill prisoners and prisoners under the age of 25,” Medinsky said on Telegram.

“The first batch of 1,212 frozen bodies has arrived at the designated exchange point in refrigerator rail cars. The rest are about to arrive. In addition, the first list of 640 wounded, seriously ill and young prisoners has been handed over to Ukraine in order to begin the exchange process. The Russian Defense Ministry’s contact group is currently on the Ukraine border,” the senior diplomat continued.

“However, Ukraine has unexpectedly moved to indefinitely postpone both the acceptance of bodies and the prisoner swap,” he added.

Medinsky noted that the Ukrainian negotiating team “for some reason failed to arrive at the exchange point.” He added that Kiev provided various reasons “including rather strange ones.”

Moscow calls on Ukraine to accept the bodies of 6,000 service members so that their families can bury them, Medinsky stressed. “We urge Kiev to strictly observe the schedule and immediately launch the exchange. Let 1,200 soldiers and officers from each side have a chance to return home based on the agreement that we reached,” he added.

“We are waiting. We are ready to work. International broadcasters, news agencies and correspondents can come and see for themselves that this is where things stand,” he said, adding: “Russia always keeps its word.”

An informed source confirmed to RIA Novosti on the same day that refrigerated trucks with bodies of Ukrainian troops, prepared for transfer to the Ukrainian side, had arrived at the border in the Bryansk region.

“They are located on the border in the Bryansk region,” the agency’s source said.

Later, Lieutenant General Aleksandr Zorin also confirmed that Ukraine refused to receive the bodies, and provided more details on how the exchange was supposed to go on.

“As for now, the first convoy to repatriate the bodies of the servicemen has arrived in the area. It comprises 1,212 bodies. Three more echelons are expected to be sent back home. Each of them has 1,200 bodies. And there is a motor echelon. It will also deliver 1,200 bodies. The total number will be 6,000 people,” the commander said in video footage released by the ministry.

“’I confirm, we are ready to fulfil the agreements, reached in Istanbul. We are ready to hand over all the bodies, and conduct a POW [Prisoners Of War] exchange according to the determined format,” he concluded.

Ukraine’s refusal to go through with the deal agreed upon in Turkey was first reported a day earlier, although the number of bodies ready for the handover was said to be around 500.

While Kiev is yet to explain why it won’t take the bodies and give them proper burial, some of the main reasons seem obvious.

By going through with the agreement, Ukraine would be acknowledging the large gap in casualties between it and Russia. Kiev was supposed to hand over the remains of some 40 Russian troops in exchange for the first 1,200 bodies. Recent exchanges showed that Ukrainian losses were 10-12 times that of Russia, and the latest deals indicate that the real rate may be even over 20 times.

Receiving the bodies would not just harm the Ukrainian political narrative, but also its economy. If these 6,000 bodies are received, Kiev would be legally obligated to compensate their families with a total of 13.5 billion hryvnias, or $328 million. The solution to avoid this for those in power is apparently to just abandon the bodies in Russia and continue to consider all the slain soldiers “Missing In Action”.

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