In Odesa, Ukrainian soldiers were remembered on Missing Persons Day

On August 30 in Odesa, on the International Day of the Missing, a rally was held on Deribasovskaya Street to commemorate Ukrainian servicemen who went missing during the war.

According to an Intenta correspondent, participants held posters with photographs of the missing servicemen, as well as messages urging people not to forget about Ukrainian soldiers who are being held captive or whose fate remains unknown.

Families of service members joined the event. In particular, Natalia, a representative of the civic organization “United by the Sea,” spoke about the sailors of two Ukrainian patrol boats that were struck by Russian forces at the start of the full-scale invasion.

According to her, on March 3, 2022, the patrol boat “Sloviansk” was struck by Russian aircraft at sea and sank. Eight crew members were rescued, but 11 sailors have been missing in action ever since.

Another boat—the amphibious assault vessel “Stanislav”—took part in the battles to liberate Zmiinyi Island. On May 7, 2022, it was hit by a Russian missile. At that time, five crew members were considered missing.

As a result of search operations, the body of one of the sailors—Seaman Andriy Setyavin—was found. He was buried. Four other crew members of the “Stanislav” remain missing.

The families of the servicemen emphasize that they continue to search for their loved ones and draw attention to their stories.

Holding the event on August 30, International Day of the Missing, was intended to commemorate those Ukrainian servicemen about whom their families have had no reliable information for years.

As a reminder,a weeklyevent in Odesa serves asa reminder of Ukrainian defenders who are prisoners of war or missing in action.

Андрій Колісніченко