A new report from Yale’s School of Public Health, supported by the U.S. State Department, has revealed alarming details about Russia’s systematic program aimed at “Russifying” Ukrainian children.
According to the research, Russian presidential aircraft and funds were used to transport 314 Ukrainian children from occupied territories to Russia, where they were stripped of their Ukrainian identities and placed with Russian families.
The report, released on Tuesday, suggests that this operation was part of a Kremlin-funded effort to forcefully assimilate Ukrainian children into Russian culture. The research highlights the early months of the war in Ukraine when these children were taken from their homes. However, Reuters was unable to independently verify the findings of the Yale report.
The study coincides with an ongoing investigation into the alleged war crimes committed by Russian officials. In March 2023, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and his child rights commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, over the alleged deportation of Ukrainian children. Lvova-Belova had defended the program, claiming it was motivated by humanitarian concerns to protect children from the ongoing conflict. Her office did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and the Kremlin referred to the lack of time to provide answers.
Nathaniel Raymond, the Executive Director of Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab and the report’s lead researcher, described the findings as “new evidence” linking Putin to the forced transfers.
Raymond, who plans to present the research to the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday, emphasized that the deportation of Ukrainian children was part of a “systematic, Kremlin-led program” to assimilate them as Russian citizens. The U.S. holds the rotating presidency of the 15-member U.N. Security Council this month.
Raymond argued that the findings could support additional charges against Putin by the ICC for “forcible transfer” of individuals—a crime against humanity under international law. Forcible transfer, which involves the systematic movement of individuals from one ethnic group to another, is considered more severe than war crimes.
In a statement reacting to the findings, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy reiterated his government’s commitment to bringing Ukrainian children back home. “Ukraine is tirelessly working to ensure our children return home and that all those responsible for these heinous crimes are punished,” Zelenskiy wrote on social media.
The ICC has not provided specific details on any potential charges related to this new evidence but acknowledged that the Yale report is valuable in furthering its investigations into the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Chioma Kalu
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