The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in collaboration with the Office of the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, is working to identify a country willing to mediate the release of Ukrainian civilians from Russian captivity.
This was announced by Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets during a parliamentary address presenting his 2024 annual report on human and civil rights in Ukraine, Ukrinform reports, referring to broadcast by MP Oleksiy Honcharenko on YouTube.
“The return of Ukrainian civilians remains the most challenging category,” Lubinets explained. “For prisoners of war, we rely on the Geneva Conventions and the UAE as the primary intermediary. For children, an international coalition led by Qatar plays a key role. As for civilians, no country has yet officially taken responsibility (to help with the return of civilians from Russian captivity – ed.) Together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we are actively searching for such a partner, with preliminary agreements already in place. We await results.”
Lubinets emphasized that Ukraine has repeatedly appealed to Russia through intermediaries with proposals to return civilians.
According to Lubinets, over 16,000 civilians are currently considered missing, with approximately 1,800 confirmed to be in Russian captivity. “We have repeatedly approached the Russian side through intermediaries to initiate the return of civilians. Unfortunately, according to the Geneva Convention, there is a direct rule that Russians have no right to detain civilians. And there is no clear answer what to do if they violate it,” Lubinets explained.
The Commissioner also highlighted efforts to secure the release of Ukrainian journalists held in Russian captivity. “We maintain a separate list of Ukrainian journalists in Russian detention, and sadly, the list is extensive. International partners have expressed willingness to assist us in these efforts, and we are working on this matter separately,” he stated.
Lubinets emphasized that Ukraine has proposed a viable mechanism to facilitate the return of journalists. “If there was genuine intent on their side to repatriate their own people, this issue could have been resolved long ago. Nevertheless, we persist. We have comprehensive information regarding Dmytro Khyliuk and other journalists, including their locations and conditions,” he added.
Lubinets also emphasized that he had held three rounds of mediated talks with the Russian side on the return of the body of Ukrainian journalist Viktoria Roshchyna, who was killed as a result of torture by the Russian Federation.
As Ukrinform previously reported, Russia refuses to return Ukrainian civilians and does not provide the Coordination Center with any information about them, as they are witnesses to war crimes committed by the aggressor.
