Identification of dead bodies handed over by Russia will take over a year

Another 1,245 bodies were returned to Ukraine. Photo: Coordination Centre

It will take at least 13-14 months to fully identify the 6,060 bodies of the dead that Russia handed over to Ukraine under the Istanbul agreements.

This was announced by Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko during a telethon.

According to him, the identification process is extremely complicated, as not all of the transferred remains are in good condition. Experts are still analysing the condition of the bodies and the number of complete remains among them.

«This is a preliminary assessment of our experts: it will take us more than a year to fully identify the victims,» said Ihor Klymenko.

The minister stressed that all the services involved — forensic medicine, investigators and experts — are working in three shifts to complete this difficult but necessary work as soon as possible.

Earlier, it was reported that during the last exchange of bodies, Russia handed over the remains of its servicemen to Ukraine along with the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers. This was probably done on purpose.

On 16 June 2025, Ukraine completed the last stage of repatriation of the bodies of the dead in accordance with the agreements reached in Istanbul.

Earlier it was reported that on Sunday, 15 June, the bodies of the fallen Ukrainian soldiers were returned. Another 1,200 bodies were repatriated to Ukraine.