A UKRAINIAN prisoner of war had the words "Glory to Russia" burned onto his skin while held captive behind the border.

A disturbing photo emerged showing the mutilated soldier after he was released in a prisoner exchange, and Ukraine's intelligence service has confirmed it is genuine.

The phrase, written in Russian, has been branded sideways onto his right flank in large, uneven letters.

Up the middle of the tortured soldier's torso is another thick, livid scar ragged by rough stick marks.

He also has a tube fitted into his stomach, and another area of major scarring on his left flank.

Andrii Yusov, spokesperson for Defence Intelligence of Ukraine [DIU], said: "Unfortunately, the photo is real. He wasn’t in this exchange, but one of the earlier ones.

"While examining him at a rehabil

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