The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on the return of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia, raising this issue to a new, truly global level. At the same time, Ukraine is intensifying diplomatic, human rights, and legal pressure, building a complex system for the search, return, and reintegration of children. Maksym Maksymov, project manager of the President of Ukraine's "Bring Kids Back UA" initiative, told UNN journalist about why these events are a breakthrough and how the daily struggle for each child continues.
Details
The adoption of the resolution by the UN General Assembly became further proof that the world is increasingly aware of the scale and systematic nature of the aggressor country's crimes against Ukrainian children. For the first time in UN history, a document directly concerning their return has been adopted at such a high level. This strengthens international pressure mechanisms and creates a political mandate for further action.
For the first time, a decision on the return of children was adopted at the level of the UN General Assembly. It is important that at this level there is recognition that the forced deportation and forced displacement of our children by Russia is a gross violation of international law. And the world community condemns it.
One of the key points of the document is the comprehensive mandate of the UN Secretary-General, which allows for the coordination of all involved structures. This is a new level of institutional involvement.
This resolution gives the UN Secretary-General a comprehensive mandate to coordinate the work of all relevant UN structures for its implementation: to demand from Russia full information about the whereabouts, health status, legal status, and location of our children, and to seek unhindered access for the UN and international humanitarian organizations to the places where they are held. This is important. The initiative to submit and vote on the resolution came from the President of Ukraine at the previous meeting of the international coalition for the return of Ukrainian children, which took place in September at the UN platform. This is an important victory for Ukrainian diplomacy.
It should also be noted that the hearings dedicated to the topic of abducted Ukrainian children in the Senate were the first in US history, and this is a significant step. In addition, such a format of attention from the American legislative body indicates the consolidation of the issue on the political agenda of both parties, as not only Ukrainian representatives testified, but also senators and congressmen, which enhances the impact of this event.
For the first time, there were hearings on this topic at such a high level in the United States. Both senators and representatives of the House of Representatives testified. In particular, these were Senator Klobuchar, Senator Blumenthal, as well as Congressmen Fitzpatrick and McCall. In general, according to feedback from everyone, the hearings were very successful, as there was bipartisan and bicameral attention.
During the hearings, Ukraine was able to convey an important message: Russia's crime is not only the physical displacement of children, but also an attempt to absolutely destroy their identity.
Russia is trying to erase the identity of children and raise them as "great Russians." To do this, they use a wide arsenal of measures: changing school curricula, systematic indoctrination measures, "brainwashing," involving children in paramilitary and ideological camps, changing their personal data, issuing Russian passports, that is, systematic passportization. All this is aimed at tearing children away from Ukraine.
As of today, Ukraine has returned 1,892 children thanks to the joint work of the state, public organizations, and international partners, Maksymov says. At the same time, the Ministry of Justice is already processing more than 20,000 reports of deportation or forced displacement, of which 9,221 cases have already been verified. However, Russia's resistance makes the process extremely difficult and dangerous.
Russia is unwilling to cooperate. Moreover, it systematically opposes the return of children. That is why their names are changed, they are scattered across different remote regions, and all of them are issued Russian passports: because all this complicates the identification, search, and establishment of the whereabouts of children, and, accordingly, the return processes. Well, and I'm not even talking about the difficulties of free movement to the occupied territories. Purely politically, it is absolutely not profitable for Russia to return our children, because they are returning witnesses of war crimes, at least.
An important element of the work is international cooperation and documentation of crimes. Ukraine closely cooperates with human rights organizations and, in particular, the Yale University Humanitarian Lab. The Yale team provided evidence of forced adoptions and the existence of 210 institutions used by Russia systematically to justify the induction and militarization of Ukrainian children, Maksymov says. These materials have already been considered by the UN Security Council.
They transferred the data they collected to the relevant Ukrainian state bodies, and we also worked with them on communicating their research and work results so that the world would learn about them in the widest possible way. This includes their penultimate study, when they found a system of forced adoption in Russia and evidence regarding 300 children who became victims of it.
At the same time, Ukraine is actively working to bring those responsible to justice. Maksymov reminds that in November, the Prosecutor General's Office announced suspicions against five individuals for the deportation of Ukrainian children.
These were representatives of the occupation administration, the so-called DPR, and three collaborators who illegally and forcibly took 367 children from the Donetsk region to Russia. This was a pre-planned operation with the participation of the highest leadership of the Russian Federation. And, of course, let's not forget about the proceedings in the International Criminal Court, for which arrest warrants were issued for Putin and his children's ombudsman Lvova-Belova.
A separate area is the reintegration of returned children, which is no less important than their return. According to the expert, Ukraine has created a comprehensive support system: from psychological and medical assistance to educational support and family placement.
It all starts with an interview at the child protection center in Kyiv, where psychologists, among others, talk to them, assess the child's needs, whether it is necessary to restore documents, what their psychological needs are, whether there is a need for certain medical services, whether there is a need for humanitarian aid: clothes, a laptop, such things. A separate question is whether they need to be placed in school, how to catch up on educational gaps, etc.
After the child receives a needs assessment, they are assigned a case manager who coordinates all services. In addition, often, returned children turn out to be orphans, Maksymov says. And in such a case, the children are placed either in foster or patron families.
None of the returned children end up in orphanages. They are all placed in families. Then, when it is clear what help the child needs first, a case manager is appointed, that is, essentially a personal friend for the returned child and family. Accordingly, he coordinates the work of a multidisciplinary team consisting of representatives of various state structures and public organizations that provide this support and meet the child's needs.
In addition, a special program has been created in Ukraine to help children who have returned home.
There is a payment, the state pays 50,000 UAH to each returned child, family, so that they can also dispose of them as they wish, after they return. Of course, this is not the only payment, there are other ways to help children, and the state takes a very active part in this.
Increased international attention, systematic work of Ukrainian institutions, and multi-level advocacy form the basis of the struggle for the return of every child. And although Russia resists, Ukraine manages to restore justice step by step and save children's lives.