KIEV, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- Ukraine on Wednesday has returned Italy 17 paintings, which were stolen by armed robbers from the Castelvecchio museum in Verona last year, the Ukrainian presidential press service said in a statement.
The paintings with a combined estimated value of 16.7 million U.S. dollars were found by Ukrainian border guards in May this year hidden in plastic bags near the Ukraine-Moldova border.
The masterpieces, which include works by Rubens, Bellini, Pisanello, Tintoretto and other famous European artists, were handed over by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to Italian Culture Minister Dario Franceschini during a ceremony in Kiev.
While addressing the ceremony, Poroshenko praised Ukrainian officers for their work in recovering the paintings.
"The efficient cooperation of the prosecution, investigation, border guards and other Ukrainian law enforcement officers has enabled us not only to eliminate the channel to smuggle art values, but also to find these priceless works of art and return them to our Italian friends," Poroshenko said.
For his part, Franceschini thanked the Ukrainian authorities for their efforts to bring back the stolen paintings to Italy.
"We had a strong fear that we will never return these extraordinary masterpieces," Franceschini said.
Three armed thieves have stolen the paintings from the Castelvecchio in November 2015, when the museum was closed to public. The Italian police have arrested 12 suspects in connection with the heist.
