At a meeting of the UN Security Council on Monday on the situation of children in military conflicts, a US representative said that the forced deportation of Ukrainian children unaccompanied by parents to Russia, their adoption and Russification contradict all existing norms of international law.
“Russia, in its speech, tried to promote its war in Ukraine as something positive for Ukrainian children,” said US Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Richard Mills. “I want to be clear: Russia’s brutal large-scale invasion of Ukraine is having a horrifying effect on children.”
He noted that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, had reached similar conclusions after his visit to Ukraine.
After a six-day visit, he said he was shocked by the scale of the destruction and described as alarming the plight of the civilian population and, in particular, Ukrainian children. Grandi said the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), together with international partners, will seek access to Ukrainian children in the Russian Federation and advocate for family reunification. He noted, and this is not the first time, that in a situation of armed conflict, the granting of citizenship and the opening of possibilities for the official adoption of children in another country violate international law.
During a meeting of the Security Council, a Russian representative declared that already “400,000 Ukrainian children have found protection in Russia”.
US Deputy Ambassador Richard Mills was skeptical of these statements.
“Many reports indicate that Russia is relocating children inside the territories it occupies, and sending them to Russian territory, in some cases deporting Ukrainian children for the purpose of Russification and adoption or placement in Russian families”.
According to the UN, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has killed 448 children, injured hundreds and displaced millions. More than five million children do not receive an education.
UNICEF calls for an end to strikes against Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure, including power grids and educational institutions.
