The Regional Center of the Western Region of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War – the Western Region Consultation Center – has started working in Lviv.
The opening of the Regional Center was attended by representatives of the Coordination Center for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, including the head and secretary of the working group on interaction with the media and relatives of the defenders of the Coordination Center, Andriy Yusov and Bohdan Okhrimenko.
The opening of the Regional Center is another step and evidence that Ukraine remembers all its Defenders and our team will make every effort to bring them all home. Ukraine does not forget any of those who stood up to defend it and is ready to help and support as long as necessary and to the maximum extent possible
Andriy Yusov said.
At the beginning of the presentation, the head of the Lviv Regional Military Administration Maksym Kozytskyi took the floor.
It is very symbolic and significant that our Regional Center opens its doors for the first time on Volunteer Day. It was the Ukrainian volunteers who were the first to take the enemy’s attack, and without a doubt, and at the call of their hearts, they were the first to go into battle. Unfortunately, many volunteers are also in Russian captivity today. I believe and hope that the opening of this center will also contribute to our common victory and help bring all our defenders home.
said Maksym Kozytskyi, head of the Lviv Regional Military Administration, during the opening ceremony.
The regional center will provide all the necessary services to help the families of servicemen who have been captured or gone missing.
The center is headed by Anna Kuziuta, head of the Office for Support of Military Personnel and Their Families. This is the fourth such center in Ukraine.
Relatives of soldiers can apply here not only from Lviv region, but also from Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, Volyn, Zakarpattia and Rivne regions.
It will be staffed by lawyers, psychologists, representatives of the Security Service of Ukraine, the Prosecutor’s Office, the police, military enlistment offices and the Defense Forces. They will provide on-site counseling and specialized support to the families of our soldiers who are in captivity or missing, as well as help ensure that those we have already brought home from captivity have access to quality treatment and rehabilitation.
The Western Regional Center of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War is operating at 17 Copernicus Street.
The event was also attended by Yuriy Goncharenko, head of the InfoLight.UA initiative. The initiative cooperates with the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War at the central level. Today, we also agreed to cooperate with the Western Regional Center.
The Center will officially start its work on March 15.
“Residents of six regions – Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, Rivne, Volyn and Zakarpattia – can apply to us. This is why we have a large team working for us, representing all military units, law enforcement agencies, and the police. In order to respond promptly to the challenges faced by the families of prisoners of war. In addition to the most valuable issue – the return of relatives from captivity, there are many technical nuances with documents, certificates, etc. We are here to solve bureaucratic issues as well. Our hotline is 0 800 300 541. You can call from 9 to 17 hours on weekdays“, comments Anna Kuziuta, Head of the Coordination Center.
According to Andriy Yusov, a spokesman for the Main Intelligence Directorate, this headquarters, like other regional ones, will perform the same functions as the Central Headquarters. He also added that relatives of Ukrainian prisoners of war should never turn to the enemy’s institutions or resources:
First of all, you need to contact the official institutions of our state. This is what our regional centers were prepared for. Here you will be provided with all the necessary information and a roadmap. The coordination headquarters are the only authorized body to work on prisoner of war issues
“The public reception center will advise on legal and procedural issues, state social obligations that are guaranteed when a soldier is taken prisoner. Every day we will be in contact with people whose relatives are in captivity or missing,” says Maksym Kozytskyi.
