Moscow, Apr 29, 2024, IANS

Moscow/Munich, April 29 (IANS/DPA) Two Ukrainian men who were stabbed to death in the southern German state of Bavaria, allegedly by a Russian citizen, were members of the armed forces, according to information from Kyiv.

The two men had been in Germany for medical rehabilitation after sustaining injuries during the war, Ukrainian media reported.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba had instructed his diplomats to keep a special eye on the case and maintain constant contact with Germany's security agencies so that the suspect would be punished according to the full severity of the law, the reports said on Sunday evening.

Two men from Ukraine were stabbed to death on the premises of a shopping centre in Murnau in Upper Bavaria on Saturday evening.

Shortly afterwards, police arrested a 57-year-old Russian.

Kuleba thanked the German authorities for the arrest, the online portal Ukrainska Pravda reported.

According to police reports on Monday, there are no indications so far that the crime is connected to the Russian war against Ukraine, which Russian President Vladimir Putin launched on February 24, 2022.

Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians and Russians live in Germany.

The Ukrainian nationals, aged 23 and 36, both lived in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen. They died from stab wounds: the older of the two at the scene of the crime, the younger a short time later in hospital.

The investigating judge issued an arrest warrant for murder on Sunday.

According to the investigations so far, it appears that the three men knew each other, a police spokesman said.

Details still need to be clarified.