According to official data, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the Russian army into Ukraine, Russia has forcibly deported to its territory more than 16,000 Ukrainian children, 2,000 of them are orphans. The Russian authorities resettled Ukrainian children in 57 regions of Russia, including Siberia. All sorts of « camps » are organized for the deported children on the territory of Russia, aimed at their « patriotic education », Russification, brainwashing with an idea of « Russian world ».

The process of Russification of Ukrainian children involves the deliberate change of the child’s passport data in order to complicate the search for relatives from Ukraine or authorized Ukrainian state structures. In addition, Russia has accelerated the procedure for the adoption of Ukrainian children by Russian families and the granting of Russian citizenship. In addition, the process of kidnapping Ukrainians is used by the Russian authorities to solve the demographic crisis in their country.

The abduction and forced assimilation of Ukrainian children by Russia can be traced back to the second half of the 18th century. Since that time, the Russification of young Ukrainian children has become a state policy of the Russian authorities.

By deporting Ukrainian children, Russia is committing one of the serious and most cynical crimes, since children are the most vulnerable social group. The illegal export of Ukrainian children not only leads to their separation from their family and their usual cultural environment, but also deprives them of normal food and housing, often accompanied by violent acts and forced exploitation.

To date, Ukraine has managed to return only 323 children from Russia. The Russian authorities do not intend to return the Ukrainian children, so the arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court of Russian President Vladimir Putin is a fair and justified step. In addition to the Russian president, everyone involved in the forced deportation of Ukrainian children should suffer their well-deserved punishment.

Source: cyprus-daily.news