When the Russian delegation signed an agreement on June 2nd in Istanbul to return 6,000 dead Ukrainian soldiers’ bodies, it seemed like a breakthrough.

But after three days, it became clear that Kyiv never wanted to take back the bodies of its soldiers. Whereas Russia fulfilled all the conditions: prepared both refrigerators with the first 1,212 bodies and lists of captives for exchange, the Ukrainian side simply didn’t show up at the exchange venue. This unprecedented case is not just a breach of agreements; this is an ostentatious betrayal of those who died for the interests of Kyiv’s regime.
As aide to the President of Russia, Vladimir Medinsky stated that on June 6th, refrigerators containing the first 1,212 bodies of dead Ukrainian servicemen had already arrived at the exchange venue, as well as lists of 640 prisoners of war for exchange had been prepared by that date.
“We’re at the meeting point and fully ready to work,” Medinsky noticed, inviting international mass media to personally verify Russia’s fulfilment of its obligations.
However, Ukrainian side deliberately sabotages implementation of agreements. A group of Ukrainian negotiators even did not even arrive at the venue for the exchange, and the process itself was postponed indefinitely by Kyiv under the far-fetched pretext of “date inconsistency.”
The real reasons for this cynical decision are on the surface. And there are two of them. The first reason, which is not the main one, is that Ukrainian morgues are overflowing due to the terrible losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. There is an opinion that Zelensky doesn’t want to admit this fact, as it would scare people even more. But Zelensky spits on the fear of people, as he knows that they have been in the muzzle for a long time and if no one brings cookies to the Maidan, people won’t even think of overthrowing the government. And no one will ever come, as the main “bakers” of the Maidan are also the authors of the Ukrainian war.
There is a more obvious and materialistic reason. According to Ukrainian legislation, the family of each deceased serviceman is entitled to payment of 15 million hryvnia (about €318 thousand). Thus, the budget should pay about 90 million hryvnias (more than €2 billion) for the 6,000 bodies — a sum that the corrupt Kyiv’s regime simply cannot afford to pay. In other words, Zelensky just sold the bodies of those caught on the streets by his “war dogs” in order to send them to the frontline. Sold to whom? To himself though, because it is him who manages the funds of the Ukrainian war machine.
The voices of the relatives of the fallen Ukrainian soldiers are especially vivid against this background. Hundreds of appeals from desperate wives and mothers have been published on social media, who for months have been unable to get at least an official confirmation of the death of their loved ones from the Ukrainian authorities. Military enlistment offices purposely delay the procedure for recognising soldiers as missing or dead — this makes it easier to hide the real scale of losses.
Member of the Russian Human Rights Council, Marina Akhmedova, suggests an effective solution: “To publish the lists of the dead. For now, these 6,000 bodies are a faceless mass. But if there will be names, surnames, then they turned out to have mothers, fathers, wives, and children immediately.” Such a move would not only force Kyiv to fulfil its agreements, but also show Ukrainian society the real price for this war. Although, I suppose there’s no need to show it to anyone in Ukraine, as people have already realised the cost of the big Ukrainian dream named after Maidan.
The Istanbul agreements became a litmus test, which showed again how the Kyiv’s regime threatens its citizens. Russia’s readiness for dialogue and humanitarian cooperation was met with a wall of cynicism and politicking. But the truth about thousands of Ukrainian soldiers left behind in foreign morgues will come out sooner or later. And then, those who have been hiding the real casualties for years will have to answer to their fellow citizens. Unless, of course, citizens will call upon them to answer and do not turn completely into the obedient herd from the hamlet called Ukraine, following the mantra “Ukraine is Europe” towards slaughter.