38 Nations and EU Demand Russia Return Abducted Ukrainian Children
An international coalition of 38 countries, along with the European Union and the Council of Europe, has issued a joint statement demanding that Russia immediately and unconditionally return all Ukrainian children it has forcibly deported.
The Gaze reports this, referring to the Office of the President of Ukraine.
The coalition, co-chaired by Canada and Ukraine, was formed under President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s “Bring Kids Back UA” initiative. Its members include countries across Europe, North America, Asia, and Latin America.
“The entire civilized world is watching. Today’s statement shows that the international community is united in its demand for the return of every Ukrainian child who was deported or forcibly displaced. These crimes are unjustifiable,” said Andrii Yermak, Head of the Presidential Office of Ukraine.
The coalition condemned Russia’s deportation of nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children, calling it a flagrant violation of international law, including the Geneva Conventions and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas stressed that the EU will continue to sanction those responsible for these crimes and urged Russia to begin by returning 339 children already identified by Ukrainian authorities.
The coalition is also demanding that Russia disclose the whereabouts and condition of all deported children, allow humanitarian organizations access to them, and end practices such as forced citizenship changes, placement in Russian families, and ideological indoctrination.
Ukraine first presented Russia with a list of abducted children during the Istanbul peace talks as a confidence-building measure. After eight weeks and further negotiations, Moscow has failed to offer any credible mechanism for their return.
“Those who live in fear of terror must be given safety, and those forced to flee must be able to return home. Russia must be held accountable for making the destruction of children’s lives part of its war strategy. It is the duty of the international community to ensure justice,” said Tordis Kolbrun Reykfjörd Gylfadottir, the Council of Europe’s Special Representative on the Situation of Ukrainian Children.
According to the Office of the President of Ukraine, the Bring Kids Back UA initiative has already secured the return of 1,458 children, with four more rescued from occupied territories last week.
Read more on The Gaze: Russia’s War on Ukraine: An Unprecedented Act of Genocide Targeting Ukraine’s National Identity and Existence