Relatives of political prisoners and members of the Association's board, Petro Vyhivskyi and Maryna Kiiashko, along with advocate Inna Shurman, attended a meeting with representatives of Turkey, who assist in the issue of repatriating Ukrainian citizens - Chief Ombudsman Şeref Malkoç and Ombudsman Sadettin Kalkan.

Nearly 800 people joined the meeting - one of the largest events held by the Ombudsman's Office. Relatives of captive defenders, missing persons, as well as relatives of illegally detained and convicted civilians, attended the meeting.

Turkey and its Chief Ombudsman have repeatedly assisted Ukraine in communicating with the Russian side regarding the repatriation of Ukrainians, including the transfer of lists to the Russian side. Şeref Malkoç noted that there were two trilateral meetings involving the Commissioner for Human Rights in Russia. According to him, certain agreements were reached during these meetings, which were conveyed to the Presidents of the three countries: Turkey, Ukraine, and Russia. Subsequently, important repatriations of Ukrainian women defenders took place.

Ukraine wants the Turkish side to raise the issue of mixed medical commissions. Our country has already created them and strives for these commissions to operate in Russia as well. This tool will facilitate the return of our severely wounded and seriously ill compatriots from captivity in the aggressor country.

The families of defenders and civilian Ukrainians have raised a number of issues, including the terrorist attack in Olenivka, the downing of the IL-76 aircraft, torture, and violations of the rights of Ukrainians in Russian captivity, as well as the illegal sentencing of Ukrainians.

We thank the Office of the Ombudsman of Ukraine for seeking new approaches and taking concrete actions to ensure that everyone finally returns home!

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