Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
The Kremlin has repeatedly denied abducting children, claiming they are, in fact, being saved.
20,570.
That is the number of Ukrainian children that have been recorded as taken by Russian forces since the full-scale war began in 2022.
Note that this is the recorded number of children, as Kyiv estimates the actual number to be much higher.
In 2023, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, and the Commissioner for Children’s Rights in the Office of the President of the Russian Federation, Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, over the “unlawful deportation of population (children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation”.
According to the arrest warrant, the matter is being investigated as a possible war crime.
Russia has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, framing the abductions as rescuing the children.
But apparently, rescuing someone does not mean that they cannot be sent back.
Children as part of exchanges
According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Moscow recently offered to add abducted Ukrainian children to prisoner-of-war exchange lists.
Kyiv immediately dismissed the idea.
According to United24Media, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha spoke about the issue during a major coalition meeting in Brussels. He insisted that the return of young citizens must remain completely separate from standard military prisoner swaps.
He stated the government’s position plainly:
“Today I want to state this officially: the fate of Ukrainian children will never become part of any compromise. Russia has already proposed including children in exchange lists. But this is unacceptable. Children’s freedom is unconditional,” Sybiha declared.
A visual reminder
The campaign to bring the children home continues across the globe. In Washington, an emotional display recently appeared on the National Mall near the US Capitol.
Activists and officials placed 20,000 teddy bears on the grass. Olga Stefanishyna, the Ukrainian Ambassador to the US, noted that each toy represents one documented missing child.
The visual protest aligns with a new US State Department program. Congress helped create this initiative to fund diplomatic efforts, track cases, and rehabilitate the young people who finally make it back.
Sources: Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, US State Department, International Criminal Court, United24Media
