Ukraine releases severely injured prisoners of war to Russia

This was reported by Ukraine’s Coordination Center for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

Ukraine has made a humanitarian transfer to Russia of all severely injured PoWs whose condition allowed transportation.

"In compliance with its international obligations, pursuant to Articles 109-114 of the Geneva Conventions and with the participation of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Ukraine unilaterally transferred severely injured and severely ill captured occupiers to the Russian side," the press service writes.

It is reported that this is not an exchange of prisoners of war, but a repatriation - the return of seriously injured Russians without any conditions, as provided for by international humanitarian law.

At the same time, Russia, in systematic disregard of international norms, is still holding thousands of Ukrainians hostage, including seriously ill and injured, civilians, children, women, the elderly, and those who were captured before the large-scale invasion.

"According to international humanitarian law, all these categories of citizens should be returned to Ukraine by repatriation without any conditions. Despite this, Russia not only continues to hold civilians and non-combatants hostage, but also refuses to allow representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross to visit their places of detention, does not provide them with communication with their families, proper food, medical care, and deliberately creates inhumane conditions of captivity," the Coordination Center emphasizes. 

Ukraine calls on the world to increase pressure on the state sponsor of terrorism to force Russia to comply with international humanitarian law and release all illegally detained Ukrainians.

• On March 24, the bodies of 83 more fallen Ukrainian defenders from the territories temporarily occupied by Russia were returned home.