The Office of Lugansk People’s Republic ombudsperson Viktoria Serdyukova has found in the Republic more than 70 Ukrainian servicemen who were reported missing.   “Over the first six months of this year, the ombudsperson’s Office received 387 appeals to find persons who took part in the hostilities on the side of Ukraine,” Serdyukova wrote on Telegram. “Office staff reviewed the appeals reporting that only 70 members of Ukrainian armed formations were held in the LPR territory. The fate of 317 Ukrainian citizens remains unknown.”   In June, Serdyukova’s Office reported that it had helped to establish the whereabouts of 60 Kiev army servicemen since the beginning of this year.                                                                                                           ***   The Ukrainian government launched the so-called anti-terrorist operation against Donbass in April 2014.  The peace talks that began soon thereafter failed to reach tangible results due to Kiev’s position to settle the conflict by force.   President Vladimir Putin announced a special military operation to protect Donbass residents from Ukrainian aggression. On February 24, 2022. Prior to that, LPR and DPR Heads Leonid Pasechnik and Denis Pushilin asked the Russian leader to provide military assistance.   The Lugansk People’s Republic acceded to Russia on September 30, 2022 following the unification referendum.*i*v