Russia Threatens Ukrainian Parents with Child Removal over Passport Refusals
Russian occupation authorities in Ukraine’s Kherson region are intensifying pressure on local families, threatening to strip Ukrainian parents of custody if they refuse to accept Russian passports.
The Gaze reports this, referring to the Ukrainian Center of National Resistance.
In the village of Askaniya-Nova, deep within Russian-occupied territory, residents have reportedly been warned that rejecting Russian documentation could lead to the removal of their children or revocation of parental rights.
The village lies roughly 52 kilometers (32 miles) from Ukrainian-controlled territory but remains cut off by heavy restrictions.
“These are not documents. They are tools of terror,” said Ivan Dudar, the Ukrainian-appointed Governor of Kherson region, denouncing Russia’s campaign of forced passportization aimed at consolidating control and erasing Ukrainian identity in occupied areas.
The coercive policy forms part of a broader pattern of human rights abuses in the region, where residents without Russian passports face harsh limitations.
These include restricted access to healthcare, difficulties crossing military checkpoints, and heightened risks of forced conscription into Russian forces.
The threat against families adds to growing international concern over Russia’s treatment of Ukrainian children in occupied territories.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry estimates that at least 20,000 children have been forcibly deported to Russia. Just over 1,400 have been returned.
Read more on The Gaze: Russia’s War on Ukraine: An Unprecedented Act of Genocide Targeting Ukraine’s National Identity and Existence