Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) issued a statement Tuesday accusing Ukraine of using civilians captured from the Kursk region as bargaining chips in prisoner-of-war (POW) exchanges, specifically to secure the release of members of the Azov Brigade currently held by Russia.
According to the SVR, individuals close to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky view the detained civilians as “valuable” assets. The agency claimed Ukraine is intentionally delaying their release in hopes of securing something more substantial from Moscow than wounded or unfit-for-combat Russian POWs.
The SVR added that Kiev is aware Russia lacks an equivalent “trump card” in the form of captured Ukrainian civilians.
During Ukraine’s offensive into the Kursk region last August, dozens of Russian civilians were reportedly taken into Ukrainian territory. In March, 30 residents of the Kursk region were released. However, the total number of civilians currently held by Ukraine remains unknown.
Last year, Russia’s human rights commissioner, Tatyana Moskalkova, stated that thousands of inquiries had been filed concerning missing persons, though it remains unclear how many have been located or confirmed dead within Russian territory.
The SVR’s statement, released through the state-run news agency TASS, comes as a Russian delegation prepares to travel to Turkey this week. Negotiations with Ukraine are tentatively scheduled for Thursday, and this issue is expected to be raised if talks proceed.
So far, only President Zelensky has confirmed attendance. He has insisted that he will only engage in talks directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin—a condition viewed as unlikely to be met, given Russia's previous statement that they would be sending a delegation, much like they did in 2022.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, along with envoys Keith Kellogg and Steve Witkoff, will also travel to Turkey to observe and evaluate whether negotiations should move forward.