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16 Sep 2026
Put People First: Human Rights Defenders Call on US Negotiators to Prioritise Prisoner Release
Nobel Peace Prize Laureates and civil society organisations call on Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff to make the release and exchange of all people deprived of liberty in connection with Russia’s war in Ukraine a priority in negotiations.
Oleksandra Matviichuk, Head of the Center for Civil Liberties (Ukraine), Ales Bialiatski, Head of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” (Belarus), Oleg Orlov, Member of the Council of the Memorial Human Rights Defence Center (Russia), and more than 90 civil society initiatives participating in the PeopleFirst campaign signed an open letter to the US negotiators.
“As diplomatic discussions resume, we urge that the rights and protections of people deprived of liberty, forcibly transferred, deported, or otherwise separated from their families as a result of the war and related repression be addressed from the outset,” human rights defenders stressed.
Key points of the appeal
There is often an assumption that a ceasefire or a formal peace agreement would automatically be followed by the release or exchange of all those deprived of liberty in connection with the war. This cannot be taken for granted. Unless these issues are addressed explicitly from the beginning of negotiations, there is a serious risk that people held in detention or otherwise prevented from returning home will remain in limbo even after other agreements are reached.
Tens of thousands of people remain deprived of their freedom or separated from their families, including prisoners of war, Ukrainian civilians unlawfully detained in Russia and Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, Ukrainian children forcibly transferred or deported to Russia or Russian-occupied areas, and Russian and Belarusian political prisoners prosecuted for their anti-war stance.
Many Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilian detainees have been subjected to torture and ill-treatment in Russian custody, denied adequate medical care and contact with their families, and, in some cases, sentenced to lengthy prison terms following proceedings that violate basic fair trial guarantees.
Particular attention should be given to people facing heightened risks in detention or especially urgent humanitarian circumstances, including people with serious illnesses or disabilities, women, children, older people, and those who have served prolonged periods in captivity. They must not become an afterthought in the peace process. Their situation should become a priority in diplomatic discussions rather than left until a final political settlement.
We therefore urge the United States to make the release, return, protection and humane treatment of these people an integral part of any renewed negotiations with Russia.
This should include concrete humanitarian measures aimed at:
- prioritizing negotiated release and returns for people facing particularly urgent humanitarian circumstances, including those with serious illnesses or disabilities, women, children, older people, and those who have spent prolonged periods in captivity;
- facilitating the release and exchange of prisoners of war in full compliance with international humanitarian law concerning their treatment and repatriation;
- securing the release and return of Ukrainian civilians unlawfully detained in occupied areas of Ukraine and in Russia;
- securing the return of Ukrainian children unlawfully deported or forcibly transferred to Russia or Russian-occupied areas to their families and communities;
- pressing for the release of Russian and Belarusian political prisoners imprisoned for their opposition to the war;
- ensuring immediate access to adequate medical care and protection from torture and ill-treatment for all those who remain detained; and
- restoring and ensuring regular contact between detainees and their families.
Any diplomatic process concerning the war will necessarily address major questions of security and political arrangements. But it should also address and prioritize the immediate rights and protection needs of the people whose liberty, safety, and family lives have been profoundly affected by the war and related repression.
