Ukrainian border guards were kidnapped during consultation meeting, - Border Service Head Tsyhykal

The State Border Guard Service has decided to limit the number of border consultation meetings with Russia due to kidnapping of two border guards in the Sumy region.

This was announced by Head of the State Border Service Petro Tsyhykal, Censor.NET reports citing 112 Ukraine.

He said regular border consultation meetings between two neighboring countries is common practice around the world, but given Russia's unpredictable behavior, the Border Service has decided to limit their number.

"We have decided to limit these meetings to the level of heads [of border guards serviced - ed.] in order to secure personnel who are less prepared," the head of the agency said.

Tsyhykal said the two border guards from the Sumy unit were kidnapped by Russians during such a meeting. He says the Russians did not necessarily entered the Ukrainian territory but kidnapped the officers from the border.

On Oct. 3, two officers of Znob-Novhorodske unit of the Sumy border guard service were monitoring a section of the state border, when connection with them was lost at around 8 p.m. Later, Russian media reported of detention by FSB border detachment of two 'violators' who called themselves Sumy unit border guards.

On Oct. 9, Russian court arrested the officers for two months for alleged illegal border crossing. Ukrainian consul is not allowed to visit the prisoners. A meeting of border guard representatives of Ukraine and the Russian Federation regarding the detained Ukrainian border guards was supposed to take place in Bryansk, Russia, on Oct. 9, but was sabotaged by the Russian side.