Vice Prime Minister, Minister for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories Iryna Vereshchuk calls on international legal organizations to take part in the release of Ukrainian hostages.
She spoke about the problems that arose during the organization of the exchange of captives.
Now there are about 600 Russian captives in Ukraine. We are constantly negotiating their exchange for our defenders. We draw up lists, involve the International Committee of the Red Cross in the process. But there is also a separate problem. Not only to the military, but also to many Ukrainian civilians are being held hostage by Russians: city mayors, journalists, volunteers, clergymen, ordinary workers who have never taken up arms, – the minister says.
At the same time, according to Vereshchuk, the Russian side sets a condition for exchanging military for military, and civilians for civilians.
I constantly ask negotiators from the Russian side: should we also capture Russians around the world in order to put them up as an exchange fund? But we are not terrorists or pirates, so we will not act like that, – she explained.
But it violates the norms of international humanitarian law, since the exchange of military for civilians is prohibited by the Geneva Convention.
That is why Ukraine calls on human rights organizations to seek the release of Ukrainian civilians from the occupiers.
Source: Ministry of Reintegration