Russia hands over remains of more than 1,000 soldiers to Ukraine – senior official
Moscow has transferred to Kiev the bodies of 1,003 killed Ukrainian soldiers, Russian presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky reported on Friday.
The repatriation was part of humanitarian agreements approved earlier this year during direct negotiations in Istanbul, the official said. Russia for its part received 26 bodies of slain troops from Ukraine.
Over a dozen similar operations were reported in 2025, each involving a disproportionately large number of returned Ukrainian remains. On three occasions, the transfers were unilateral.
Military observers say the figures confirm that military casualties suffered by the sides in the Ukraine conflict are strongly in Russia’s favor, even if the fact that Russian forces are advancing and recover more bodies from the battlefield is taken into account.
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned earlier this week that the pace of advancement could increase, having accumulated knowledge on how to best deal with Ukrainian fortifications and enjoying an increasingly decisive advantage in capabilities and strength.
During his Q&A session on Friday, Putin said Russia seized the strategic initiative after repelling the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk Region earlier this year, and will keep pushing back Ukrainian forces in multiple directions.
