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UN Demands Russia Return 20,000 Abducted Ukrainian Children, 91 Countries Vote Yes
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![Photo of Roman Kohanets]( "Photo of Roman Kohanets")
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The UN General Assembly has adopted a nonbinding resolution demanding that Russia ensure the immediate, safe and unconditional return of all Ukrainian children it has unlawfully transferred or deported during the war, after a vote that saw 91 countries in favor, 12 against and 57 abstentions, according to Detector Media on December 4.
Adopted on December 3 at the Assembly’s 11th emergency special session on Ukraine, the text “demands that the Russian Federation ensure the immediate, safe and unconditional return of all Ukrainian children who have been forcibly transferred or deported.”
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It also urges Moscow to cease any further forced transfers, deportations, separations from families and legal guardians, changes of personal status through citizenship or adoption, and indoctrination of Ukrainian children.
Presenting the draft, Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Maryana Betsa said the resolution “is not about politics, but exclusively about humanity and the moral duty of the international community,” stressing that Russia’s war has made children the most vulnerable targets of aggression.
She said Russia is not only killing and injuring minors but also attempting to erase their identity by banning Ukrainian language, literature and history in occupied areas, subjecting children to hostile propaganda and recruiting them into so-called children’s military formations.
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According to Ukrainian foreign ministry data cited at the session, at least 20,000 Ukrainian children have been deported to Russia or Russian-controlled territory since 2022, and Ukraine has so far succeeded in returning just over 1,850 of them.
Russia urged member states to oppose the measure, with Deputy UN Ambassador Maria Zabolotskaya telling the Assembly that “each vote for the resolution is support for lies, war and confrontation” and arguing that opposing votes were a vote for peace.
Moscow has repeatedly rejected accusations of abduction, insisting it is evacuating children from a war zone and providing them with care, a justification Ukraine and its partners say violates clear legal limits on any wartime evacuation and is being used to facilitate unlawful transfers.
The resolution, drafted by Ukraine with Canada and the European Union, is not legally binding but adds to mounting international pressure over the fate of the children and formally asks the UN Secretary-General to use his good offices to facilitate their return and ensure access for international monitors and humanitarian organizations.
Earlier, it was reported that Ukrainian human rights organizations presented evidence to the US Senate suggesting that some Ukrainian children abducted by Russia have been forcibly transferred to North Korea and placed in military-style camps, prompting further scrutiny of Russia’s deportation practices.
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