Moscow discloses fate of 2,000 troops missing on frontlines

The fate of around 2,000 Russian soldiers reported missing in Ukraine has been established, Russia’s human rights commissioner, Tatyana Moskalkova, has said.

Moskalkova noted that authorities had confirmed that some of the missing personnel were held captive, while others had left their units without authorisation, Caliber.Az reports via Russian media.

“Some were taken prisoner on Ukrainian territory. Others were in the hospital. There were also cases of soldiers abandoning their units and refusing to carry out combat duties,” she said.

Earlier, she said that a total of 1,851 Russian servicemen were freed from captivity in 2025.

“Through appeals made to my office, and as I coordinate negotiations and engagement, we were able to participate in the release of 1,851 prisoners,” Moskalkova explained.

She credited the return of the prisoners to the efforts of President Vladimir Putin, government agencies, intelligence services, and negotiations with the Ukrainian side.

The head of the Russian Red Cross, Pavel Savchuk, noted that hundreds of residents in the Kursk region remain unaccounted for.

By Aghakazim Guliyev