Ukraine returns bodies of 33 soldiers to Russia

Ukrainian officials on Tuesday handed over the bodies of 33 soldiers, recovered from Russia, to their families.

The bodies of Russian servicemen were sent from a special storage facility in Kharkiv to be exchanged for the bodies of Ukrainian servicemen.

"This is, firstly, from the de-occupied territories, we used to gather here around Kharkiv, but when active offensive operations began, they were near the border and the line of demarcation: Kupiansk, Izium, Kupiansk, and Izium districts," Alexander Lutsenko, an officer of the Civil-Military Cooperation Group said.

Lutsenko was one officer who had worked on Monday to prepare the bodies for the exchange.

Another officer, Anton Ivannikov, highlighted the importance of returning servicemen home to their families "where they will find the last refuge to be buried by their relatives, mothers and parents."

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