Interagency cooperation on the release of hostages who are in captivity of militants and in Russia should be intensified so that all captives could be able to return home before Christmas.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said this at a meeting with the heads of law enforcement agencies on Sunday, the presidential press service reported.
"I am demanding clear and coordinated work between the Security Service and the Foreign Ministry on speeding up the return of our (citizens) home. The task is that all those who are on the lists and their number currently exceeds 600 should return before Christmas," he said, addressing SBU Chief Valentyn Nalyvaichenko.
He added that SBU should take a lot of effort to find those unaccounted for.
Poroshenko also welcomed the ceasefire that was launched on December 9, noting that in general, this helped strengthen Ukrainian positions and provide soldiers with supplies in the line of defense.
"The courage of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the effectiveness of other law enforcement units help us carry out technical re-equipment in a short time, restore the combat capability of units, increase the strength and demonstrate today that Ukraine is a strong state. Peace can be maintained only by strong Armed Forces," he said.