Families of Ukrainian POWs anxiously watch peace effort

By Dan Peleschuk

KYIV (Reuters) - As U.S. President Donald Trump presses on with a plan to end the war in Ukraine, Kateryna Bohutska wants to make sure her 24-year-old son isn't forgotten.

Standing across from the U.S. embassy in Kyiv with an image of Rostyslav, a marine saxophonist held by Russia since 2022, she and some other relatives and friends of the thousands of soldiers and civilians held by Russia hope the flurry of diplomacy will set them free.

"If everyone unites on this front - our side, the Americans, other countries that have influence - then there must be a result," said Bohutska, 46, during a rally on Thursday calling for the return of Ukrainian prisoners of war and missing.

Kyiv and Moscow have carried out regular small-scale prisoner exchanges throughout the war, but President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has proposed an all-for-all swap as a potential pathway to peace with Russia.

The Trump administration wants a quick peace in the three-year-old war and is seeking to force concessions from Kyiv after a White House clash between Trump and Zelenskiy last week.

The U.S. suspended military aid and intelligence sharing this week as it pivots to a more conciliatory approach to Moscow and seeks a deal with Ukraine to exploit its minerals.

Bohutska, who described the emotional toll of watching numerous exchanges take place without her son, said it was critical to keep up public pressure as peace plans evolve.

"Because it would be frightening if, for example, it comes time for negotiations and this (issue) takes a back seat," she said.

The matter is lent greater urgency by the fact that Ukraine and the United Nations have accused Russia of widespread abuse of prisoners, including through torture and rape. Russia denies the charge.

Roman Andriychenko, a sailor who was recently exchanged after 33 months in captivity, described his prison conditions as "impossible to convey in words".

He said he wants to see more prisoners - including his fellow sailors - exchanged each round than the typical dozens or scores that are currently swapped.

"I've seen how it's done - I don't see a problem. What, are there not enough buses or planes to carry the guys?" asked the 34-year-old.

"The only thing that's missing is an agreement and the desire. Maybe the desire is there, but we don't have the agreement yet."

Prisoners also include civilians like 42-year-old Serhiy Dorokhov, an electrician who was kidnapped from his Kyiv suburb home in March 2022 after Russian troops commandeered it, according to his wife Oksana.

Speaking to Reuters outside the embassy amid a sea of placards and flags emblazoned with images of those jailed and missing, she said only the U.S. had the diplomatic power to help secure his release.

"Unfortunately, our side cannot influence Russia...we don't have any leverage. We're expecting - asking for - the American side to somehow help us with this."

(Reporting by Dan Peleschuk; editing by Philippa Fletcher)