-111f0e5095e02c02446ffed57bfb0ab1.jpeg "Photo of Roman Kohanets")
Under President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Bring Kids Back UA initiative, 11 Ukrainian children aged between 10 and 17 have been returned from Russian-occupied territories and the Russian Federation, according to Andrii Yermak’s statement published on July 19.
The group includes five siblings who were taken to Russia and remained out of contact for a long period. “Only later were they able to reach out to their adult sister in Ukraine and asked to be brought home,” Yermak said.
Their return was delayed by pressure from Russian child protection services, which attempted to prevent their departure. “The return became possible only after more than a year of persistent and painstaking work,” he added.
The operation was carried out in coordination with the Office of the Ombudsman of Ukraine and with mediation by the State of Qatar. Yermak stressed that the work is ongoing: “We are fulfilling the President’s task — to bring everyone back.”
This return is part of Ukraine’s continuing efforts to repatriate children unlawfully taken across the border or held in occupied areas.
Meanwhile, in an earlier stage of the same initiative, another group of Ukrainian children was rescued from Russian-controlled territories and reunited with their families.
That operation, also under Bring Kids Back UA, underscored the complexity and urgency of returning minors illegally taken across the front lines.
