MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Ukraine has been holding captive more than 20 Russian civilians kidnapped by Ukrainian troops during a 2024 raid in the western Russian border region of Kursk, Russian presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky said on Sunday.
«They have been de facto abducted and are being held hostage. Russia has been painstakingly bargaining for these civilians to be returned home. Many have been brought back, including the eight returned today. More than 20 others are estimated to remain [in captivity],» he said on Telegram.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that 146 Russian servicepeople and eight Kursk residents were brought back from Ukraine in a swap on Sunday mediated by the United Arab Emirates.
Medinsky, who was Russia’s chief negotiator at the talks with the Ukrainians in Istanbul, said that most of Kursk residents abducted by Ukrainian troops were the elderly. He said the Ukrainians were handing them back in small groups, «literally trading them» for servicepeople in Russia’s custody that they need the most.
