U.S. calling on Russia to immediately release Kremlin prisoners

16.12.2021 12:36

Ukrinform

The United States is calling on Russia to immediately release Ukrainians illegally held in Russia and the certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, and to ensure urgent medical assistance to prisoners in critical condition, including Natalia Statsenko.

That’s according to a statement released by the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine via Twitter, Ukrinform reports.

“In this season of good will, our hearts go out to the hundreds of Ukrainians unjustly held by Russia and its proxies. We join their families in calling for their immediate release," the embassy said.

U.S. diplomats also stressed that all detainees in critical condition, including Natalia Statsenko, who require surgery, must be granted urgent medical care.

During a press marathon on November 26, President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed hope that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and U.S. President Joe Biden would provide assistance to Ukraine in making Russia release Ukrainian prisoners of war and hostages, illegally held in Russia and the occupied areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

On December 10, Oleksiy Arestovych, Spokesman for the Ukrainian Delegation to the Trilateral Contact Group, said that the Ukrainian side offered three options for a prisoner swap: "13 for 13", "24 for 24," and "60 for 60," while Russia snubbed all of them.

Earlier, the father of Natalia Statsenko, a physician taken prisoner in the occupied Donetsk, said the woman was in critical, life-threatening condition.