Russia doesn't want Its prisoners of war back – Ukraine’s Human Rights Commissioner

Dmytro Lubinets said this in a comment to Ukrinform.

"As someone deeply involved in these processes, I can confirm that Ukraine has never refused to exchange prisoners of war. We are constantly proposing new initiatives. If the Russians truly wanted their prisoners back, it would have happened already. It seems they simply don't need their prisoners," Lubinets said.

He called Russia's attempt to blame Ukraine for the failed exchange pure propaganda.

Lubinets also mentioned his repeated appeals, through intermediaries and directly, for Russia to return the bodies of fallen Ukrainian soldiers. He noted there is still no information about the plane allegedly transporting Ukrainian POWs that Ukraine supposedly shot down.

"If they claim our heroes were killed, then hand over the bodies. If the Russians wanted a transparent investigation, they would immediately allow international experts to the crash site and involve them in the examinations. They would also hand over the bodies quickly. Their delays suggest there are many questions," he stated.

Lubinets compared this situation to the mass murder of Ukrainian prisoners in Olenivka.

"In my view, this is another attempt by Russia to discredit Ukraine, similar to what happened in Olenivka in the summer of 2022, when the Russians killed POWs. Same scenario. They claim it was done using weapons provided by international partners: Himars in Olenivka, and a Patriot missile downing the plane," Lubinets emphasized.

• On Friday, May 31, Ukraine managed to return 75 people from Russian captivity, including soldiers from the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the National Guard, border guards, and four civilians.