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Ukraine’s Justice Ministry: Kiev, Moscow agree on handover of convicts from Crimea

The handover is scheduled for March 3

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KIEV, February 21. /TASS/. Ukraine and Russia have agreed on a date for the handover of Ukrainian convicts from Crimean correction facilities, Ukraine’s Deputy Justice Minister Sergey Petukhov said on his Facebook page.

"We have agreed with the Federal Penitentiary Service on the handover of twelve Ukrainian citizens who have been serving prison terms in Crimea," he said, adding that the handover was scheduled for March 3.

A spokesman for Ukrainian ombudsman Mikhail Chaplyga told TASS this may be referred to the handover of convicts earlier discussed by Russian and Ukrainian human rights commissioners Tatyana Moskalkova and Valeriya Lutkovskaya.

From the outset, the parties held talks on the handover of 18 Ukrainian citizens who had been convicted in Crimea before the peninsula rejoined Russia. One of them proved to have Russian citizenship, while another was later released on probation. Chaplyga later said as of today many others had been transferred to other correction facilities.

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