A working group will be established under the National Security and Defense Council to expedite the identification of the bodies of fallen defenders
A special working group will be established under the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) to address issues related to the identification of the bodies of Ukraine’s fallen defenders. Its mission will be to coordinate the work of government agencies and oversee the process of identifying fallen servicemembers.
According to him, for the families of service members who are missing in action, the long wait to identify the deceased is an additional source of pain. Therefore, the state must expedite the relevant procedures and ensure the proper quality of forensic medical examinations.
“At the direction of the President of Ukraine, priority measures have been identified. The government must strengthen the forensic medical examination system: increase the number of specialists and ensure appropriate working conditions for them,” the statement reads.
Ihor Klymenko also emphasized the need to establish specialized forensic medical examination offices in the regions that will focus specifically on identifying the bodies of fallen servicemen.
According to him, this should make the process more specialized and, at the same time, reduce the time needed to identify the deceased.
“From now on, this work will be overseen by the National Security and Defense Council. A dedicated working group will bring together all relevant government agencies. We need to view the entire process holistically: where delays occur, what decisions are lacking, and who is responsible for implementing them,” added Ihor Klymenko.
The National Security and Defense Council will pay special attention to identifying delays in the identification of bodies and determining who is responsible for resolving them. The working body is to bring together representatives of all government agencies involved in this process.
Ihor Klymenko emphasized that for the families of the missing, the main outcome should be concrete answers, not explanations for the delays.
“What matters to the families is not an explanation of why the system is slow. They need answers. Our work is focused precisely on achieving results,” he explained.
Thus, the identification of the bodies of fallen defenders will be subject to separate oversight by the National Security and Defense Council, and the working group is tasked with coordinating the actions of the relevant government agencies and facilitating the expedited identification of the deceased.
This was announced by NSDC Secretary Ihor Klymenko.
Ukraine has repatriated more than 26,000 bodies and remains of fallen soldiers, but a significant portion of them remain unidentified. The authorities are preparing measures to speed up the identification process.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Serhiy Koretskyi has instructed officials to eliminate unnecessary delays in the identification of the bodies of repatriated military personnel and civilians. The government also plans to strengthen coordination and information sharing among government agencies so that the families of the deceased can receive accurate results more quickly.
