Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets and Russia’s newly appointed Ombudsman, Yana Lantratova, have agreed to verify lists of military prisoners and civilian hostages held in detention facilities. The discussions, which included proposals to involve the International Committee of the Red Cross, took place during a telethon.
This meeting marked the first engagement between the two officials, contrasting with the previous four-year collaboration with former Ombudsman Tatiana Moskalkova. Lubinets noted that they are starting with a “clean slate” in their negotiations.
The talks lasted over three hours, beginning with a private discussion lasting approximately 30 minutes, followed by team discussions with three representatives from each side.
“We agreed to start from scratch. We will verify all lists and categorize them,” said Lubinets.
He highlighted priority categories for Ukraine, including severely wounded and ill individuals, those who have been in captivity the longest, and prisoners and civilians captured between 2014 and 2022. The two sides also discussed procedures for verifying missing persons.
Lubinets provided the Russian side with a list of correctional facilities and pre-trial detention centers where the conditions for Ukrainian military personnel are reportedly the most dire. He received preliminary assurances that the Russian side is prepared to initiate monitoring visits and share their findings.
Additionally, Ukraine proposed allowing representatives from the International Committee of the Red Cross access to Ukrainian prisoners and initiating monitoring with foreign ombudsmen. Lubinets mentioned that his counterparts are ready to form a monitoring mission and visit Russia if granted access to the prisoners. In return, Ukraine is willing to provide access to Russian military personnel for these observers.
The two parties also agreed to exchange official documents from their archives directly, despite the lack of diplomatic relations. Lubinets raised this issue, noting frequent requests for official documents from Russia by Ukrainian authorities.
“This was supported and will serve as an additional tool for citizens of Ukraine needing documents from the territory of the Russian Federation, for instance, for pension purposes,” Lubinets stated. “I also promised that we can do the same for citizens of the Russian Federation from Ukraine.”
Lubinets reminded that alongside the June 5 meeting, there was a recent exchange where Ukraine returned 185 military personnel and one civilian hostage, as well as five individuals with limited mobility, including an 84-year-old woman who has reunited with her daughter in Ukraine. He added that many Ukrainian citizens are seeking to leave Russia, and both sides agreed to continue discussions on this matter.
The first meeting between Ukrainian and Russian ombudsmen resulted in an agreement to verify lists of prisoners and improve conditions for detainees. Both sides discussed involving international organizations and facilitating the exchange of official documents.