Two wounded Ukrainian soldiers landed in Japan on Thursday to receive care as part of Tokyo's support for the country in its fight against the Russian invasion, a Ukraine government source said.

The arrival of the pair, who will undergo rehabilitative care at the Self-Defense Forces Central Hospital in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward, comes after Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada told the Ukrainian Ambassador to Japan Sergiy Korsunsky in May that the country will accept its wounded military personnel.

A vehicle carrying two wounded Ukrainian soldiers enters the Self-Defense Forces Central Hospital in Tokyo on June 8, 2023. (Kyodo)

The Defense Ministry said one of the two has lost a leg, while the other has lost both. Their treatment is expected to last one to two months.

The Ukrainian government requested the personnel receive treatment in Japan, the ministry said, and medical costs will be covered by Tokyo.

While Japan Self-Defense Forces hospitals are in principle only intended to treat the country's defense personnel, the defense minister can decide whether to permit care to non-affiliated individuals.


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