Ukraine and Russia will continue exchanging bodies without being tied to Istanbul, - DIU

Ukraine and Russia will continue exchanging the bodies of the deceased, but in a new format. It will not be tied to the negotiations in Istanbul.

This was stated by the representative of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, Andriy Yusov, reports RBC-Ukraine with reference to the live television marathon broadcast.

"Regarding repatriation within the framework of the agreements in Istanbul, Ukraine received from the aggressor state the bodies of 6,000 deceased, who, according to the Russians, are citizens of Ukraine, including defenders. The process of identification and verification continues, as commented in detail by the Ministry of Internal Affairs; therefore, the work in this direction is not completed and will continue," Yusov stated.

At the same time, the representative of the Defence Intelligence Directorate reported that the countries will continue exchanging the bodies of the deceased.

"Repatriation measures will continue in a different mode, regardless of the agreements in Istanbul," he added.

The return of the bodies of Ukrainian defenders

It should be noted that Ukraine and Russia, during the second meeting in Turkey, reached an agreement on a large-scale exchange of the bodies of fallen defenders. The parties agreed on a format of "6000 for 6000."

The first stage of the exchange took place on June 11 - Ukraine returned the bodies of more than a thousand fallen soldiers. This concerns those who died in the east, south, and also in the Kursk region.