KEY POINTS

  • The families of Russian soldiers are reportedly demanding a meeting with the Defense Minister
  • They accused the Defense Ministry of 'blocking' efforts to change the status of missing soldiers
  • The soldiers' relatives did not appeal for Putin to end the war in Ukraine, says a report

The families of more than 100 Russian soldiers who went missing in the war in Ukraine are now calling on the Kremlin to find their relatives, according to a report.

Radio Free Europe’s Russian service Sever.Realii on Tuesday published a copy of a written appeal that the families of Russian soldiers sent to the Ministry of Defense of Russia. In the letter, more than 106 people demanded a meeting with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and accused the Defense Ministry of “blocking” efforts to change the status of missing soldiers.

“We demand to find our relatives, to add them to the lists of prisoners of war who are missing. Search work is not being carried out, since they are in the status of missing. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation has been blocking a change in the status of servicemen for more than five months, regardless of their constantly changing information. Relatives have to look for facts and prove for themselves that their son, husband is in captivity (died) – this is the case throughout the country,” the letter read.

In the letter, some families also accused the Defense Ministry of lying to them about the whereabouts and status of their loved ones. Anna Danilova, whose 47-year-old husband was deployed to the war in Ukraine, had contacted military officials who offered reassurances that her husband was alive. However, she was later told that her husband was “burned to death” in Ukraine.

A similar account came from Valya, the mother of a Russian soldier, who had been repeatedly told that her son was alive, only to find out later that the soldier had been killed in the war.

Relatives of Russian soldiers are now asking President Vladimir Putin to “find their children and husbands,” return the prisoners and initiate DNA tests to identify troops who were killed in the war.

The letter reportedly did not include any appeals for Putin to end the war in Ukraine, which began in February. Since then, more than 39,870 Russian soldiers have been killed in the confict, according to estimates from the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

Many of the Ukrainians who have swelled the ranks of the army following the invasion have received training in a forest previously occupied by Russian soldiers
Many of the Ukrainians who have swelled the ranks of the army following the invasion have received training in a forest previously occupied by Russian soldiers AFP / Sergei SUPINSKY
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