Andriy Yermak, head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, shared important news from the United States of America. He emphasized that concluding a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia is impossible without the return of all kidnapped Ukrainian children. Yermak disclosed this information on his Telegram channel.
According to him, a group of U.S. senators from both parties introduced a resolution that conditions the return of kidnapped children within the context of peace negotiations. “The kidnapping of children is not only a war crime, it is an attempt to destroy our identity and break the future of the nation. We will not allow this,” he stressed.
Among the initiators of the resolution are Republican Senator Chuck Grassley and Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar, as well as Roger Wicker, Joni Ernst, Rick Scott, Dick Durbin, and John Fetterman. Yermak noted that representatives from both parties united around a common principled position.
The situation with the kidnapping of Ukrainian children
Presidential Commissioner for Children’s Rights Daria Herasymchuk previously reported that by the end of March 2023, Ukrainian authorities had confirmed data on more than 19,500 children who were taken from temporarily occupied territories to Russia. However, due to the occupation of part of Ukraine’s territory, an exact count remains a difficult task.
On April 5, 2023, 49 countries around the world condemned Russia in a joint statement for organizing a UN Security Council meeting allegedly dedicated to the legal grounds for kidnapping Ukrainian children from occupied territories. The United Kingdom blocked the broadcast of the speech by Russia’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, on UN platforms, calling for her to be held accountable at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
The Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine noted that there is currently no single transparent mechanism for the return of Ukrainian children deported to Russia. On March 17, 2023, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova on suspicion of illegal deportation and transfer of Ukrainian children.
