Since the war started Ukraine has brought back 46 children deported to Russia

OLENA BARSUKOVA – WEDNESDAY, 20 JULY 2022

Since the beginning of the full-scale war, Ukraine has managed to bring back 46 children who had been forcibly deported to the aggressor state.

Source: Daria Herasymchuk, advisor to the President and ombudsman for children’s rights, at a briefing on 20 July

As of today, 5,100 cases of child deportation have been officially confirmed, and the number is increasing every day.

"In open sources, the Russian authorities give a figure of 350,000 children who have allegedly been ‘evacuated’ to Russia. During the evacuation these children should have been immediately brought back to the territory of Ukraine, but this didn’t happen.

That is not "evacuation", but forced deportation and forced displacement," states Herasymchuk.

The ombudsman cannot disprove or confirm the figure of 350,000 given by the Russians, since they do not provide any lists.

She also explained that in order to bring Ukrainian children back, they first have to be identified.

Ukrainian institutions have no access to the occupied territories, so they work with international organisations to search for children.

At the moment, the majority of deported children are children who were forcibly driven out of Ukraine together with adults. Some of them have lost their parents.

"We also know that among these children there is a certain number of children with orphan status and children who have been deprived of parental care.

Russia’s aim is to establish procedures of adoption and change of citizenship. This is why this category of children is in great danger", explains Herasymchuk.

Background: Putin has signed a decree that simplifies the procedure of obtaining Russian citizenship for Ukrainian children, particularly for orphans.

Recently the Russians deported 108 Ukrainian children who had been deprived of parental care from Donetsk Oblast to the territory of Russia and placed them with foster families.