Ukraine receives 1,000 bodies from Russia; rare act of cooperation, peace talks remain stalled

Ukraine on Thursday said it had received the bodies of 1,000 people that Moscow identified as fallen Ukrainian soldiers , while returning the remains of 24 Russian servicemen in exchange.

“Repatriation measures took place today. 1,000 bodies, which according to the Russian side belong to Ukrainian servicemen, have been returned to Ukraine,” the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said on Telegram.

Ukraine’s “I Want to Find” project said the exchange was mediated by the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The repatriation of soldiers’ bodies and prisoner swaps remain among the few areas of cooperation between the two sides since Russia ’s 2022 invasion. Tens of thousands of troops have been killed, but neither Moscow nor Kyiv regularly publishes casualty figures.

The exchange came as peace talks remain stalled. The Kremlin said last week that negotiations with Ukraine were on “pause” despite US-led efforts and three rounds of direct talks between the warring countries.