Russia has made a significant decision to return four Ukrainian children to their families, marking a crucial milestone in Qatar’s pilot scheme aimed at repatriating children abducted by Russia in the wake of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year. This development comes as Ukraine has identified around 20,000 of its children taken by Russia.
The move follows the International Criminal Court’s indictment of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova for the unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children. Russia had contended that its actions were driven by humanitarian motives, claiming that the evacuation of children aimed to protect them from danger.
This repatriation initiative, facilitated by Qatar, is a vital step towards reuniting families torn apart by conflict. While the youngest child among the four is a mere two years old, the oldest is 17, underscoring the urgency of their return to their families.
The return of these four children serves as a test for the scheme brokered by Qatar, which facilitated discussions between Moscow and Kyiv. The hope is that the successful repatriation of these children will pave the way for further initiatives aimed at de-escalating tensions and fostering trust between the two parties.
However, the process of retrieving the children from Russia has proven to be complex. In at least one instance, a child had to travel back to Ukraine via Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland. One of the four children, a seven-year-old, was reunited with his grandmother on Friday and arrived in Ukraine on Monday. The other three children, also reunited with their families, are expected to arrive in Ukraine later on Monday or Tuesday.
These four children represent only a fraction of the thousands of Ukrainian children forcibly separated from their families. Kyiv has stated that these children were taken across the border into Russia and subjected to active efforts to erase their Ukrainian identity. In some heart-wrenching cases, Ukrainian families have been compelled to endure gruelling journeys into Russia to reclaim their abducted children.
The successful return of these children signifies a glimmer of hope amid a larger humanitarian crisis, underscoring the need for continued international efforts to address this pressing issue.
Kiki Garba.
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