A group of 200 Ukrainian nationals, including families of soldiers who died in eastern Ukraine conflicts and war veterans, will be hosted in Turkey for a week-long vacation.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry invited the families to Antalya, a Mediterranean city popular with Ukrainian tourists. The trip will be the first trip abroad for some families, who flew to Turkey from Kiev yesterday. Mariya Shepchenko, whose son was killed in the conflict five years ago, said they were grateful to Turkey for the invitation.

Yağmur Güldere, the Turkish ambassador to Ukraine, said the trip, organized through the personal efforts of Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, who is from Antalya, aims to relieve the pain the families felt over their losses a bit. "I hope they will return home from the trip with good feelings and friends from Turkey," Güldere said.