Ukrainian border guards report detention of two Russian citizens
KYIV. Sept 12 (Interfax) - Ukrainian border guards detained two Russian citizens in the Luhansk region on Saturday, the press service for the Ukrainian Border Guard Service has reported.
"Two people who had illegally crossed the Ukrainian state border were detained by officials from the Luhansk border guard unit at the Milove section on September 12. The border guards registered the border violation with high vision equipment," the report says.
The report says the detainees were dressed in military uniform without identification signs and turned out to be citizens of the Russian Federation.
"During the inspection, one of the men had a Russian passport and the other had a document stating that he is a Russian military man from a military unit in the Voronezh region," the report says.
According to the Ukrainian State Border Guard, the violators were taken to a border guard department and SBU and Interior Ministry officials have been informed. An investigation is underway.
This fact has been reported to the Russian authorities, the Border Guard Service said.
The source told Interfax the detainees are brothers.
The Russian Defense Ministry, for its part, said the Ukrainian special services have abducted a Russian serviceman from the territory of the Rostov region.
"Ukrainian security service members abducted Russian contract serviceman Viktor Barsukov from the community of Chertkovo, the Rostov region, and took him to Ukrainian territory at about 6:00 a.m. on September 12," the ministry told Interfax.
"Along with the Russian serviceman, his brother Nikolai Barsukov, a civilian, was also transported to Ukrainian territory," the ministry said.
"The military garrison command received information on the abduction of the Russian citizens from their relatives living in Chertkovo, whom the Barsukov brothers had been visiting," the ministry said. The Defense Ministry demands the immediate release of the Russian citizens.
The village of Chertkovo is adjacent to the Russian-Ukrainian border and is separated from the Ukrainian village of Milove in the Luhansk region by a rail track, the ministry said.
